Indian filmmaker among global artists invited to Vatican

Among artists from around the world invited by the Vatican to discuss global peace is prominent Indian filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt and his daughter Pooja.

The father-daughter duo, according to the media, will join 500 other artists at the Sistine chapel on November 21.

"It is true that Pooja and I will be meeting the Pope in the Vatican. Five hundred artists from around the world have been invited and we are the ones from India. We will leave on Nov 19," said Mahesh Bhatt.

Pointing that there is a discord between the church and the artiste community, Bhatt said, the event would be an interaction between both "to contribute in terms of global peace."

In a statement, Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, said the Church's relations with artistes had been good in the past but the two worlds were currently in a "divorce''.

"The Pope is opening the dialogue, saying the Church needs to have ties with art. The artists should start responding through their work," Cardinal Ravasi said.

Painters, sculptors, architects, writers, musicians, singers and theatre directors are included in those invited to the meeting.