Celebrate Asian Heritage Month in Richmond with an Evening of Multicultural Poetry
23 May 2006
Richmond residents can celebrate Asian Heritage Month by joining poets from India, Korea, China, Indonesia, Tibet and Iran in “Reflections of Richmond”.
Talented poets from around the globe will demonstrate how diversity enriches Canadian literature at an event of verse and song will be held on:
Date: Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Time: 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Location: Council Chambers
Richmond City Hall
The following poets will be featured:
Ashok Bhargava
Ashok Bhargava's books include “Mirror of Dreams”, “Skipping Stones” and “Half Open Door”. His poems have been published in many magazines and anthologies in Canada, U.S.A. and India, and his work has been was featured on CBC Radio and Channel MTV. Ashok has participated in such festivals as Word on the Street and Vancouver International Storytellers. In 2003, he won the World Poetry Series Ambassador Poet Award.
Tamdin Tsetsen
Tamdin is a traditional Tibetan singer who escaped from Tibet when he was 17 and lived in a Tibetan refugee village in India for 11 years before coming to Canada three years ago. He will present some rarely heard ancient Tibetan songs.
Robin Susanto
Robin was born on the straight of Malacca in Indonesia. He immigrated to Canada at the age of 16, first to Ottawa, then to Nova Scotia where he began his studies in Mathematics, before settling in Vancouver. In addition to working as a teacher, he is also a translator and writer of fiction and poetry. His work has been published in Quills, The New Quarterly, and Contemporary Verse 2.
Emily Chu
Born and raised in Calcutta (now called Kolkata), Emily was educated by Catholic missionary nuns. She reads and writes Bengali, Hindi and English and speaks Chinese dialects - Haka, Cantonese, and some Mandarin. Emily graduated from UBC, with a Bachelor of Arts in Geography and a Master of Arts in Community and Regional Planning. She has worked in civic government in the Greater Vancouver area for over 25 years and is currently working (as a volunteer) with local governments in Sri Lanka to help plan post-Tsunami recovery.
Raj Kaur Pannu
Raj Kaur Pannu's poems have been published in The Capilano Review, Border/Lines, and West Coast Line. She is currently a member of The Willan Choir which, along with The West Coast Symphony, performed Mozart's "Requiem" at The Old Auditorium at UBC.
Ahn Bong Ja
A Korean-Canadian Poet and Essayist, Ahn is a member of World Poetry Reading Series, a member and sponsor of World Poetry Radio Show and a member of World Korean Literature. The author of the Poetry Anthology "The Blue Winged Fish", Ahn writes about her love for nature and longing of the human hearts. Her literary works appear frequently in the local Korean news publications.
Mahin Milano
The translator of (Concert) masterpiece “Ismael Kadare”, Mahin was the winner
of the 2005 Booker Prize Award of England (from French to Farsi). For many years, she has worked as a journalist, photojournalist, art critic and graphic designer in Iran, France and Canada. Mahin has written three books of poetry, a short story and a novel ready to print. Currently, she is writing another novel while at the same time working for different newspapers writing reviews, interviews, short stories and poems.
“Reflections of Richmond” is one of many events held during Asian Heritage Month in Richmond. Throughout the month of May, Pan-Asian arts and cultural events have been showcased to appreciate and celebrate cultural diversity and to help promote cross-cultural understanding, harmony and citizenship in the community.
For more information on events held during Asian Heritage Month, visit www.explorasian.org or the Calendar of Events section.
Free parking for “Reflections of Richmond” is available at:
- City Hall - 6911 No. 3 Road
- Richmond Cultural Centre - 7700 Minoru Gate.
“Reflections of Richmond” is hosted by Ashok Bhargava & friends and sponsored by the City of Richmond, Richmond Public Library and explorAsian.
