1. The 150th Birth Anniversary celebrations of Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore were kicked off in Sri Lanka today at a function held at the British School Auditorium in Colombo, which was presided over by H.E. Ashok K. Kantha, High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka. Mr. Hemasiri Fernando, Secretary, Ministry of Postal Services of the Government of Sri Lanka released a special postal stamp in the denomination of Rupees 5 and a First Day Cover commemorating Rabindranath Tagore and Mr. Wimal Rubasinghe, Secretary, Ministry for Cultural Affairs and Arts of the Government of Sri Lanka released a commemorative volume “Remembering Rabindranath Tagore”, containing a compilation of articles in English, Sinhala and Tamil, which highlight the poetic, philosophical and cultural expressions of Gurudev Tagore and their relevance in the contemporary world.

2. In his address at the event, High Commissioner thanked the Government of Sri Lanka for releasing a special postal stamp on this occasion. He said this was a befitting homage to a towering personality who straddled the world of literature, art, music and intellectual discourse and contributed in a very meaningful manner to the cultural renaissance of India, Sri Lanka and other countries of Asia. High Commissioner recalled Tagore’s strong association with Sri Lanka, which he had visited thrice in 1922, 1928 and 1934. He also noted Tagore\\'s association with the Sri Palee campus at Horana, whose foundation stone he had laid at the invitation of Wilmut Perera. High Commissioner announced that “Shap Mochan”, the play staged by Tagore during his 1934 visit, would be re-staged in Sri Lanka in November this year by famous Manipuri dancer Bimbavati Devi and her 21 member troupe sponsored by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations.

3. High Commissioner also highlighted the association of prominent Sri Lankan artists such as Ananda Samarakoon, Chitrasena and Sunil Shantha with Visva-Bharati University which was also founded by Tagore. He added that to re-kindle the old linkages and associations, exchange of visits between Sri Palee and Santiniketan will be facilitated by the High Commission during the year. An exhibition of Tagore’s paintings will also be organized in Sri Lanka later this year along with a photo exhibition on the life and travels of Tagore.

4. High Commissioner especially thanked His Excellency the President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka for sending his message for the commemorative volume “Remembering Rabindranath Tagore” published by University of Colombo with the support of India-Sri Lanka Foundation.

5. On 6 May, 2011 High Commissioner was the Chief Guest at an event organized by Sri Palee campus at the Faculty of Graduate Studies auditorium, University of Colombo to pay homage to Tagore which included screening of documentaries on Tagore made by the students of Sri Palee and talks on Tagore by Prof. Walter Marasinghe and Dr. Premadasa Mudunkotuwa.

6. Other events planned during the year to commemorate 150th Birth Anniversary of Tagore in Sri Lanka include a festival of films based on the novels and stories of Tagore such as ‘Agantuk’, ‘Pather Panchali’, ‘Charulatha’, ‘Ghare Baire’ and ‘Teen Kanya’ and an essay competition in Sinhala, English and Tamil on Tagore for undergraduate students in the universities in Sri Lanka. The High Commission of India and Ministry of Cultural Affairs and Arts also agreed to organize later this year research by scholars on the three visits of Tagore to Sri Lanka in 1922, 1928 and 1934 and the impact of Tagore’s visit in the cultural renaissance within Sri Lanka.

7. The special event concluded with musical tribute to Gurudev Tagore in form of beautiful rendition of Rabindra Sangeet by Amar-Daya Foundation.