The annual Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan in Pune has a long history going back to the early 2oth century. The events surrounding the 83rd sammelan, held last month, when Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan and actor Amitabh Bachchan were to share the stage were farcical. The chief minister simply failed to realise that sharing a stage with someone you disagree with is, in the ultimate analysis, a very small matter.