The events are being held under the auspices of the Indian Embassy, and their overarching focus is on India's cultural heritage, from the beginning of the civilisation on the Indian Subcontinent to this day, when the country is a global power in telecommunications, automobile and pharmaceutical industry, and Hindi is spoken by more than 100 million people.
Arindam Bagchi, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of India to Croatia, said he was pleased that a great interest in Indian culture and civilisation existed in Croatia, hoping that the programme would bring the two countries closer together.
The whole year round, people in Croatia will have an opportunity to see what India was in the past, the development of its religion, culture, history and civilisation, and also what it is today, in the contemporary world, the ambassador said at a press conference on Monday.
He said it was appropriate that the Indus Valley was chosen as the starting point for the programme, because even today additional details are revealed about this culture which flourished more than 4,000 years ago and which remains one of the major influences on the modern Indian civilisation.
"When we talk about India, we think about a country rich in culture and spirituality, which makes it attractive to visitors all over the world. However, many are not aware of the full extent of India's cultural diversity and wealth," said Luka Stefan, one of the authors of the programme.
Nikolina Vrancic, another author of the programme, said that India is a beautiful, yet also surprising country full of opposites, which the programme is aimed to present.
Sanjin Mihelic, the director of the Archaeological Museum in Zagreb, noted that the programme was one in a series of programmes at the Museum aimed at introducing the domestic audience to other cultures and civilisations.
"The year-long programme leads us to a path of bringing Croatia and India, and their cultures, closer together, and it will result in several meetings. We are also planning cooperation with the National Museum in New Delhi, which will, I hope, be crowned by an exchange of two large archaeological exhibitions," Mihelic added.
Exhibition on occasion of 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi
The Archaeological Museum on Tuesday also launched the "150 Years of Gandhi Birth Anniversary" photo exhibition, dedicated to the prominent world historical figure whose heritage, based on compassion for humankind, nonviolent action and the quest for the truth, remains an inspiration to many people.
The exhibition reminds us of the whole of his life, from his childhood, schooling, his stay in South Africa, the start of the nonviolent revolution, and up to his return to India, said Pradeep Urs on behalf of the exhibition organisers, the Embassy of India and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations.