LUCKNOW: A writer should be courageous and have capability to question the government as and when required. This was the call for the day by the panel comprising writer Naresh Saxena, critic Virendra Yadav, academician and author Nadeem Hasnain and activist Seema Rajouria on Sunday.
They were speaking during a discussion ‘Need for Satire in the age of repression’, organised as part of the two-day socio-cultural festival ‘Rang ho Habib ka, Vyangya Parsai sa’ at Kaifi Azmi Academy.
Organised by Indian People’s Theatre Association (IPTA) along with All India Kaifi Azmi Academy, the programme was inaugurated by former Vice Chancellor of Lucknow University, Rooprekha Verma.
Addressing the current political scenario around the world, the panel moderated by UP cultural secretary IPTA, Deepak Kabir discussed the need for satire. Saxena said a real writer or artist is one who is courageous. Adding to which, Hasnain said society needed people who can rebel and question the wrong policies of the government.
Yadav and Rajouria were of a similar opinion. Yadav said satire becomes even more important in the times of repression. “Today, when democracy and Constitution are under threat, satire can be a tool to safeguard our rights,” said Yadav.
Earlier, satirist Anoop Mani Tripathi was awarded Parsai Vyangya IPTA Samman followed by a session where Tripathi, Himanshu Rai, Rajeev Dhyani and Rajeev Nigam presented their satirical write-ups on various issues.
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