National Razavi Story Festival: An Opportunity to Introduce Lorestan’s Literary Capacities

According to the correspondent of Iran’s Book News Agency (IBNA) in Khorramabad, Ali Zivdar, on Wednesday, at the policymaking council meeting, referring to the special place of Imam Reza (AS) in the popular culture of Lorestan people, considered the festival a valuable opportunity to introduce the literary and artistic capacities of the province.

This Lorestani writer stated that Lorestan has taken significant steps in fields such as music, poetry, and visual arts, but is less known in the realm of storytelling. He added: This festival can be a platform for introducing the province’s story writers at the national level, activating and presenting hidden capacities.

Zivdar, referring to the ancient tradition of ‘matalgouyi’ (storytelling/parable-telling) in Lorestan, which has played an important role in cultural transmission, suggested that a part of the festival be dedicated to collecting and recreating Razavi parables.

This Lorestani poet added: Many oral stories of the people of Lorestan are linked to the theme of Imam Reza (AS) and his pilgrimage journey. If we can extract even twenty narratives from the hearts of storytellers, we will have taken a significant step in documenting and introducing this cultural heritage.

This writer also, emphasizing the changing taste of audiences in the media age and the inclination towards short texts, said: Razavi stories can even be produced in formats suitable for social media.

He added, referring to the festival being adorned with the blessed name of Imam Reza (AS): Eight-word stories can be a new opportunity to attract an audience.

Special Place of the Razavi Festival in Strengthening the Country’s Religious Literature

The executive secretary of this festival also, at this meeting, while thanking the council members, emphasized their strategic role in guiding this cultural event.

Fereshteh Beiranvand, referring to the special place of the Razavi festival in strengthening the country’s religious and ritual literature, said: The festival management’s trust in selecting the policymaking council members demonstrates the importance of your specialized perspective and valuable experience. The presence of members will be an intellectual backbone and a great opportunity to advance the current of Razavi literature.

She said: The 16th National Razavi Story Festival is part of the programs of the 22nd International Imam Reza (AS) Festival, and this year, Lorestan province has the honor of hosting it for the first time.

Beiranvand stated that in the initial steps, the specialized secretary of the festival was introduced, and policymaking council members were selected. She added: The festival call has been published and sent to the Departments of Culture and Islamic Guidance in the country’s provinces.

She said: This festival will be held in two sections: short story (maximum 5,000 words) and long story (maximum 20,000 words). In each section, three winners will receive valuable cash prizes, and five people will be recognized as commendable.

She said: Those interested have until the end of Azar (Iranian calendar month, roughly December) to upload their works on the website https://portal.shamstoos.ir/.

The executive secretary of the festival outlined the broad goals of this event as holding a festival befitting the name of Imam Reza (AS), attracting talented and young writers, creating a sustainable current in Razavi literature, and expanding the scope of the festival from national to international.

The head of the Cultural Deputy of the General Department of Culture and Islamic Guidance of Lorestan stated that among the goals of holding this meeting were increasing the participation of professional and young writers, designing promotional and media programs, planning for workshops and training sessions, and compiling a roadmap for the future of the festival.

Beiranvand expressed hope that with the consultation of council members, the 16th National Razavi Story Festival would turn into an influential and lasting event in the country’s culture and literature.

The Name and Memory of Imam Reza (AS) Inspire the Creation of Literary Works

The specialized secretary of the 16th Razavi Story Festival also said at this meeting: After 15 years, Lorestan province has taken on the honor of hosting the National Razavi Story Writing Festival.

Masoud Sepahvandi, referring to the place of Imam Reza (AS) in Iranian culture and thought, said: His name and memory have taken root in the fabric of Iranian people’s lives and inspire the creation of literary works.

He added: This festival is a valuable opportunity for writers to create short and long stories by utilizing the lifestyle, blessings and miracles, prayers, and pilgrimage texts related to Imam Reza (AS).

Sepahvandi stated the goals of the festival as disseminating Razavi culture, strengthening solidarity among provincial and national writers, and providing a platform for producing lasting works. He added: The success of this event depends on the collective cooperation of people of letters and culture.

The specialized secretary of the festival emphasized: We hope that with the continuation of meetings and collective solidarity, this festival will be held in the best possible way and achieve its noble goals.

In this meeting, the utilization of prominent storytelling professors for holding sideline workshops, the importance of informing story writers from across the country to participate in this festival were emphasized, and the program’s poster was unveiled.