On the occasion of Bonjour India, Festival of France in India, French and Indian keynote speakers will debate on the global challenges faced by both countries. Notwithstanding their differences, India and France are confronted with similar challenges. The speakers will give their perspectives on a wide range of issues of interest to both countries. This bilateral dialogue will feature the leading policy-makers and intellectuals from both countries. The format of this event is due to two leading intellectual and writer namely, Catherine Clément and Christophe Jaffrelot along with their Indian counter part, Dipankar Gupta and Rajeev Bhargava. As India assumes a leading role in the G-20, at a time when France and Indiadevelop an ever closer cooperation in a wide range of areas, this agora will discuss topics related to democracy, environment, national identity, social issues as well as cultural aspects of both countries.

“Postcards from Paris” is an event showcasing France and a celebration of French culture in all its richness and diversity. On this occasion 18 Delhi Public Schools of the NCR region and more than twenty schools of Delhi have been invited to participate in a variety of competitions focusing on France Dance Competition, Poster making competition, Solo Song Competition, Poetry Competition and a Quiz on France will be organised. The elimination competition will start at 12 noon till 1 or 2 p.m. in different venues of the school campus.

The second “Rendez-vous with French cinema”, showcasing the best of contemporary cinema, never seen before in India, will be presented by Unifrance, the agency promoting French cinema abroad. Celebrity actors, directors and producers will interact with India’s film industry.

The festival will also showcase legendary films including major masterpieces from the “New Wave” cinema in association with the Cinémathèque Française”.
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Inspired by her little daughter’s fascination for animals, French artist Sandra Souza created a series of triptychs depicting animals in flashy colours. Each part of the triptych reveals a part of a moving animal hence capturing the imagination of its little viewers. Join us for an animal search in the gardens of the Alliance Française!
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These three-day encounters will be an opportunity for exchanges, meetings and debates between French and Indian territorial and local authorities. Various plenary sessions and round tables will cover a large range of issues related to local development : local self-governance, sustainable development, economy, city planning, water management, waste processing, agriculture and heritage. The aim of these encounters is to share knowledge and knowhows, to reinforce existing co-operation between French and Indian local authorities and to engage more French and Indian local authorities into mutually beneficial partnerships.

The book ‘Mots transparent’ is a documentation of shared vocabulary between the French and English language. From Architecture to Wagon, English speakers already know thousands of French words; this is celebrated on the occasion of the Bonjour India festival ! With the technical support of E-Nova, an internet version of the book will also be launched. A national quiz competition will award the winners with scholarships to study French in one of the Alliances Françaises, the Indo-French cultural centres for learning the French language.

Eminent French and Indian Architects and city planners will discuss issues of sustainable architectural practises concerning both countries.

A literary feast: Readings and interactions with eminent French language authors and their Indian counterparts. This festival will enlighten and entertain audiences across several Indian cities. The “DSC Jaipur Literature Festival”, acclaimed as one of the foremost literary festivals in the world, will present a special focus on French writing.

An MTV host, singer, author, songwriter and producer, China is the quintessential eclectic artist who embodies the American idea of an entertainer. This trait was inherited from her mother, the award winning American soul singer Dee Dee Bridgewater.

With musicians from France, America, Switzerland and Vietnam, Moriarty is a ramshackle old world acoustic outfit with a theatrical bent and a tendency to dress like 1930s prohibition outlaws who make a ‘mess’ of sound that takes in folk, country, blues, jazz and cabaret.

Marion Baglan is a soprano who turned to a solo career after her debut “I the Chorus of the Opera de Tours” in 1998. Marion has performed at the Petit Treavon, at the Palace of Versailles and in Lahore and Karachi in Pakistan. Here in India she is accompanied by pianist Francois Juskowiak and plays her roles with flair and panache.

Dobet Gnahoré, from the Ivory Coast has a warm extraordinary voice and mixes Mandingue melodies to Congolese Rumba, from Ivory CoastZiglibiti to Cameroon Bikoutsi, from Ghanian High-Life to Zulu choirs, to carry the compositions along with jazz-like sounds. Her music is funky yet delicate, forward looking yet mixed with traditional tunes and is irresistibly foot tapping.

Alliance française de Delhi and the French Embassy present a weekend of exciting animation films and an art exhibition especially created for young kids.

Albert Kahn, a friend of Rabindranath Tagore, sent two operators to document India in coloured autochromes and black & white films. They were to capture daily Indian life as well as that of the Maharajahs. The result is an amazing testimony of the India that existed a century ago. The exhibition of the Albert Kahn Museum collection, printed from the most exquisite collection of autochromes in the world, takes us back to India at the beginning of the 20th century and into the1920’s. By making this exhibition possible, Louis Vuitton pays tribute to India and to the extraordinary philanthropist, Albert Kahn.
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An extravagant street show brings alive – a monumental parade mixing opera, circus, burlesque along with gigantic giraffes and other circus characters.