Meeting with the Ambassador of India on strengthening cultural ties
Today, the Minister of Culture Šarūnas Birutis met with the Indian Ambassador Devesh Uttam. The meeting focused on the cultural links between the two countries, the existing cultural cooperation and the opportunities for its development.
“India is an important partner, as evidenced by the active cultural and academic exchanges between the two countries, which have their origins in the cultural exchange programme signed by the Ministry of Culture of Lithuania and the Ministry of Culture of India,” said the Minister of Culture Š. Birutis.
The Ambassador Uttam underlined the importance of the Indian Embassy in Lithuania, which will open in September 2023, and expressed the hope that cultural ties will lead to cooperation in other areas.
The meeting emphasised that although Lithuania and India are not geographically close, they have links. One of them is the similarity of Lithuanian and Sanskrit languages, and the Institute of Asian and Transcultural Studies of the Faculty of Philosophy of Vilnius University, the Lithuanian-Indian Forum Association, the Centre for Baltic Cultural Studies of the University of Haridwar, Dev Sanskriti , India, make a significant contribution to the understanding of both cultures and countries. The two countries are also linked by historical personalities such as the Litvak Hermann Kallenbach, who was a close associate of Mahatma Gandhi. This year, the 150th anniversary of the birth of M. K. Čiurlionis was a major focus of the conversation. The Indian Ambassador remarked that the work of this Lithuanian genius is even close to the old Indian art.
The meeting discussed the potential of the countries to cooperate in the field of cinema and cultural and creative industries, and noted that two recent Indian films were presented at the International Film Festival “Kino pavasaris” (Cinema Spring) which has just come to an end this year.
Photo by the Ministry of Culture
Last updated: 16-04-2025