Fleeing the Nazi regime in Germany, in 1933 a young Jewish girl, named Anne Frank arrived with her family in Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands. On the eve of her 11th birthday the Germans invaded the Netherlands and Anne and her family were subjected to the anti- Jewish laws. The Frank family joined by their friends, the Daalder family, some eight people altogether, had to go into hiding in a concealed storage attic above the office of Anne's father, Otto Frank. With the help of Dutch resistance the two families managed to live in utter simple circumstances.

In that period Anne began to write a diary in an school exercise book, in which she noted her reflections as a young girl living under claustrophobic conditions during these dark years. Anne emerges as a living, lyrical, intensely gifted young girl, who confronts her rapidly changing life and the increasing horror of her time with astonishing honesty, wit and determination. Her diary speaks of fear, of hope, of laughter and grief.

It was not given to Anne Frank, her mother, her sister to survive the deportation and the concentration camp. They died in the winter of 1945. Anne Frank's diary was found by her father after the war, hidden in a drawer.

"When I write I shake off all my cares. But I want to achieve more than that. I want to be useful and bring enjoyment to all people, even those I've never met. I want to go on living even after my death", Anne Frank wrote in her diary.

The house in which Anne Frank and her family found refuge became a Foundation in her memory. The Anne Frank House in Amsterdam is visited by tens of thousands every year. The Foundation was created with an ultimate goal of eradication of Racism (social and ethnic discrimination)and Religious intolerance all over the world. The basis of its endeavor remains the Diary of Anne Frank, translated in many languages. One of the means is a travelling exhibition on Anne Frank. under the title of "A History for Today" The objective is to share this Dutch experience with a multicultural society. Anne Frank's life story is used to recount the history of the Holocaust. The consequences of extreme nationalism, persecution and destruction are made clear.The significance of concepts such as tolerance, human rights and democracy are also brought to the fore. Some 30 panels are recounting the life of Anne and her family with excerpts from the Diary and photos of her life. The panels are printed in English. Text is also translated into Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Gujarati and Bengali. This exhibition is starting its tour through India in New Delhi at the Habitat Centre (Open Palm Court Area) from 9-13 Nov. 2002 and will then travel to Ahmedabad (17-24 Nov.), Mumbai (29 Nov.-4 Dec.), Bangalore (9-14 Dec.), Chennai (18-23 Dec.), Hyderabad (27-31 Dec.) and Kolkata (5-12 Jan. 2003 ) (Venues for the exhibition will be announced later).

The Play the Diary of Anne Frank, retracing Anne Frank's story on the basis of her Diary, will be adapted for India by Roysten Abel and staged under his direction. The performances will be shown in Delhi at the National School of Drama on 6, 7 & 8 December 2002, in Ahmedabad at the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts on 10 & 11 December, in Mumbai at National Centre for Performing Art (to be confirmed) on 13 & 14 December, and in Bangalore at Chowdia Theatre on 16 & 17 December 2002.

Royal Netherlands Embassy New Delhi - 10th October 2002