Celebrations from Friday for Tagore's Nobel prize centenary

Book releases, exhibition of the original text of Rabindranath Tagore's nomination for the Nobel prize, panel discussions would mark the two-day celebrations organised by the Swedish embassy here from Friday on the centenary of the award won by the bard.

The programmes would also mark the beginning of the seventh edition of the Sweden India Nobel Memorial Week 2013.

A book "Tagore in Sweden - 1921 & 1926", penned by Swedish scholar Olavi Hemmila - that captures Tagore's two visits to Sweden - would also be released.

The embassy has also procured the original text of the nomination for Tagore's Nobel Prize from the Swedish Academy and will bring it to Kolkata.

Swedish Ambassador to India Harald Sandberg would inaugurate the Nobel Memorial Wall - which commemorates the Indian Nobel Laureates - Oct 25 at the Esplanade Metro Station.

The wall will be a permanent structure at the station.

Two other temporary walls will be fabricated at Gitanjali and Shyam Bazaar metro stations for a week. In addition, there will be track side branding at Rabindra Sarobar station.

While "Gitanjali" is the name of Tagore's nobel winning book of poems, Shyam Bazaar is close to his ancestral home at Joasanko where he was born.

"Tagore, now!" A panel discussion moderated by Tagore expert Radha Chakravarty would explore the relevance of the timeless poet, writer, philosopher now at the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR).

The panelists include filmmaker Gautam Benegal, Hemmila and academics Sanjukta Das and Anand Lal.

Tobias Degsell, a curator and educationist from the Nobel Museum, will conduct Spark of Creativity workshops at the ICCR for young business professional and teache them how to be more creative, come up with new ideas and how to become better problem solvers.

A photo exhibition 'Sweden through Indian Eyes'. Impressions of Sweden - captured by Kolkata-boy Abhijit Chakrabarty would also be held at the ICCR.

The Sweden India Nobel Memorial Week is a high-profile, multi-city, multi-activity annual event organized by the Swedish embassy in cooperation with leading Swedish businesses in India.

The week is instituted in memory of Swedish innovator, entrepreneur & philanthropist Alfred Nobel and celebrates the Indian Nobel Laureates as well.

The seventh edition of The Sweden-India Nobel Memorial Week pays a tribute to Tagore, the first Indian to win the prestigious prize and non-European to win a Nobel Prize in Literature, on the 100th year anniversary of his winning the prize.