The Third Dibrugarh University International Literature Festival took place on 18–21 February 2026 at Dibrugarh University, Assam.
Ukraine was represented for the third consecutive year, following its participation in 2024 and 2025. In 2026, the Ukrainian voice sounded especially powerful — poetic, historical, and deeply human.
Poet Yuliya Musakovska presented a selection of her poetry, including excerpts from The God of Freedom, and took part in the international poetry readings alongside poets and translators from India, Iraq, Spain, Portugal, Egypt, and Syria. In her remarks, she spoke about how love for one’s own people helps Ukrainians resist the aggressor, and how poetry is capable of conveying both the most beautiful and the most horrific human experiences.
Reading from The God of Freedom in English translation, Musakovska offered the audience a deeply personal and powerful entry point into contemporary Ukrainian poetry. One of the poems, The Vow (“Do you take this man”), resonated especially strongly. Tashi Chophel, the poet who moderated the event, later shared that he had discussed the poem with students at a workshop in his home state of Sikkim, on the borders with Bhutan, Tibet, and Nepal — a moving sign that Ukrainian poetry had already travelled into the Himalayas.
Her presentation also connected contemporary writing with key chapters of Ukraine’s twentieth-century history — from the Executed Renaissance and the Holodomor to the dissident movement — giving the audience essential context for understanding Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. One of her strongest points was that writing about the war today is not a choice but a responsibility — especially in a country whose artists were repeatedly silenced and destroyed.
A special part of the programme was Tales of Hope and Courage, an audiovisual performance of Ukrainian wartime poetry featuring Yuliya Musakovska and produced by Audiostories. In this project, poetry, music, sounds of nature, and visual art merged into a multidimensional portrayal of the turbulent reality of present-day Ukraine. Musakovska interwove her own poetry with works by fellow Ukrainian writers currently serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine — Artur Dron, Liza Zharikova, Fedir Rudyi, Ihor Mitrov, and Eva Tur — creating a powerful and deeply moving artistic testimony of a nation at war.
Maryna Akram, an active member of the Ukrainian community in Delhi, also joined the programme with a poetry reading and a presentation of her prose work Bechari — a story about the different fates of two women married in India, based on real-life experiences. Her contribution focused on the personal dimension of war — emotions, separation from loved ones, and the daily inner resilience of Ukrainians. It was precisely this sincerity and human perspective that resonated deeply with the audience. Through her words, listeners gained a more intimate understanding of a nation that has been defending its homeland for twelve years.
Within the international sessions, Ukrainian texts were presented alongside voices from other countries in an atmosphere of open cultural dialogue. The presence of Anju Ranjan, an Indian diplomat, writer, and Deputy Director General (Culture) of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), further strengthened this spirit of attentive and respectful exchange.
Tetiana Sharma, Third Secretary of the Embassy of Ukraine in India, was also present to support the Ukrainian participants and engage with festival partners.
Ukraine’s continued presence at the festival builds on the strong participation of Ukrainian authors in previous editions. In 2024, Ukrainian writers Halyna Kruk and Irena Karpa took part in the first festival, and in 2025 the Ukrainian programme featured Kateryna Babkina and Iryna Vikyrchak.
We sincerely thank the festival organizers for their consistent attention to Ukraine and for keeping Ukrainian literature within this important international conversation. Special thanks to Rahul Jain, Director of the Dibrugarh University International Literature Festival, for his continued engagement and support.