Bhubaneswar, Jan 12 (IANS): Acclaimed historian Sugata Bose on Friday said politicians are abusing history and one should guard against the instrumental use of it.

"Many politicians are in fact abusing history and I think what we should always guard against is the instrumental usage of history of purposes of the present," said Bose at the fourth edition of the Tata Steel Bhubaneswar Literary Meet (TSBLM) here.

"I think the only way we can combat the abuses that are taking place of history is to delve even more deeply into history and actually understand that history can be a matter of interpretation, but it is never a matter of just opinion," he added.

Bose, who talked on 'The Mahatma and Netaji', asked the youngsters to read on the life and work of Subhas Bose.

The fourth edition of the Tata Steel Bhubaneswar Literary Meet (TSBLM) was inaugurated here on Friday to a packed audience.

The three-day festival was inaugurated by celebrated poet laureate Jayanta Mahapatra, along with Anand Sen, President TQM and Steel Business, Tata Steel and Rajya Sabha member Soumya Ranjan Patnaik.

Mahapatra, the feted poet and proponent of Odia Literature who is also the first Indian English poet to receive the Sahitya Akademi Award, spoke about how poetry lets him understand reality.

He also talked about how literature is becoming more accessible in the digital age.

He encouraged budding authors to draw inspiration from the adversities they face and use the technology now available to them to their advantage to express creativity and imagination.

Legendary actress Waheeda Rehman mesmerised the audience as she reminisced on her portrayal of iconic literary characters on screen.

She shared her experience about the challenging roles that she played and the memorable moments at the shooting sets.

The eventful day concluded on a lighter note with a stand-up performance by comedian Abijit Ganguly.