Bibliophiles of Bengaluru, Gear Up For the City’s Biggest Lit Fest

The 12th edition of the much-awaited Bangalore Literature Festival will see close to 300 authors and speakers in attendance

Book lovers are in for a treat as the Bangalore Literature Festival is set to return in a bigger and better avatar this year. The two-day event will witness around 300 authors, speakers, translators and more gather in the heart of the city.

“Bengaluru is a fabulous city to host the festival because it has one of the highest book sales in the country,” says festival director Shinie Antony.

Apart from book launches, the event will have two interactive installations, a book store and classical musical performances. Eminent names from different walks of life, including actor Huma Qureshi, comedian Kanan Gill, politician-author Shashi Tharoor, philanthropist-author Sudha Murthy and columnist Shobhaa De, will grace the event.

Author Anand Neelakantan, who will be speaking on mythology, shares, “Kannada language has always produced spectacular and deep works based on Indian puranas including the classics of Kuvempu and SL Byrappa. My books, like Asura and Ajaya, have been accepted well by Bengaluru readers, both in English and Kannada.”

Speaking about her sessions at the festival, author Tejaswini Apte-Rahm says, “I’ll be doing an illustrated presentation of The Poop Book! meant for children (ages 4-8) that I co-authored with Sujatha Padmanabhan. In another session, I’ll be interviewing environment writer Arati Kumar-Rao on her book Marginlands: Indian Landscapes on the Brink.”

Tamil Nadu-based lawyer Samreen Iboo Sait, who will be travelling to Bengaluru to attend the fest, says, “The Bharatanatyam dancer in me is very excited to see Aishwarya Vidhya Raghunath’s performance and my lawyer self is thrilled to listen to author Gautam Bhatia share more of his perspective of the law, politics and a dystopian world.”

Catch It Live

What: Bangalore Literature Festival 2023

Where: The Lalit Ashok, Kumarakrupa Road, opposite Golf Club, Kumara Park East, Seshadripuram

When: December 2 and 3

Timing: 9am

Entry: Free                       

Nearest Metro Station: Cubbon Park on the Green Line

By Aayushi Parekh