Contemporary Short Stories of the SAARC Region, 2012 and Poems from the SAARC Region, 2012 launched

Two annual anthologies of the SAARC Cultural Centre, Contemporary Short Stories of the SAARC Region, 2012 and Poems from the SAARC Region 2012 were launched on 16 September on the sidelines of the Colombo International Book Fair, 2013 under the patronage of the Secretary to the Prime Minister, Mr. S. Amarasekara. Other special invitees who graced the occasion were; Mr. M. Ramachandran, the Director, Indian Cultural Centre, Colombo, and Mr. Vijitha Yapa, Chairman and Managing Diirector, Vijitha Yapa Book Shop.

In his welcome address, the Director, SAARC Cultural Centre, Sri Lanka, Mr. G.L.W .Samarasinghe mentioned that selection of short stories and poems has been a daunting task given the diverse linguistic landscape of the South Asian region. The works selected however are best  representative of all the SAARC Member States; Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.

Mr. M. Ramachandran, Director, Indian Cultural Centre, Colombo in his address mentioned that the works fittingly capture the rich lingo-cultural diversity of South Asian neighbors

The role played by Vijitha Yapa Publishers in bringing out the two Anthologies is commendable and the limited canvass available for the South Asian literati for apt exposition of their thoughts led the Vijitha Yapa Publishers to come forward to be the joint-publishers of the anthologies for the second consecutive year.  Vijitha Yapa Publications hope to see more and more works of Sinhala and Tamil translations on the ensuing anthologies.

The Chief Guest Mr. S. Amarasinghe, in his address mentioned that South Asia has a literary tradition that resembles so well and that they are hardly distinguishable. He thanked the SAARC Cultural Centre and Vijitha Yapa Publishers for their joint effort at a time when the cost of printing has dwindled and as a result has become a challenging task.

The two anthologies are available for sale at Vijitha Yapa bookshops. http://www.vijithayapa.com/