‘Culture starts from society and its people,’ said Anand at the Kerala Literature Festival in a session with K Satchidandan. The session that fuelled the talks on contemporary India, the panellists and the renowned writers discussed the present status of the country which showed the binaries of a democracy.
Satchidanandan stated that ‘Democracy must invoke the invisible.’ He also said that questions must be asked about whether a citizen’s fundamental rights are accepted, whether people’s voice are respected and whether the leaders make good use of people friendly organisations. The scenario that India is going through right now, should be the basis of discussion today, noted Anand. ‘For the past two months we have been seeing the surge of youth protests,’ added the author citing the context. ‘Democracy can only work through constant dialogues,’ he added. The session also discussed about the flaws of present-day government and discussed methods to revive it.