Kolkata: Bookworms of Kolkata can now begin their countdown for a session with Andrew Sean Greer, Pulitzer Prize winner for Fiction 2018. The American novelist and short story writer would be among the speakers at the 10th anniversary edition of the Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival which would be held in the city from 18-20 January next year.
The Pulitzer Prize Board called Greer’s 2017 novel, Less, “A generous book, musical in its prose and expansive in its structure and range, about growing older and the essential nature of love” while announcing the winner at Columbia University’s School of Journalism in April this year.
This edition of the festival promises the average argumentative Kolkatan with enough intellectual ammunition since historian Ramchandra Guha, writer and parliamentarian Shashi Tharoor, and actor-director couple Naseeruddin Shah and Ratna Pathak Shah are among those who have confirmed participation.
Organizers of the annual literary event, which would be held at the iconic hub of heritage on Park Street, maintained that the festival would feature a diverse mix of speakers including writers, humanitarians, thinkers and politicians.
“Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival (AKLF) has connected, empowered and mobilized new voices and ideas since its inception in 2010. The 10th anniversary will be held in historic Park Street’s iconic spaces giving everyone an opportunity to admire and enjoy their tangible and intangible heritage and will bring together all that is close to our hearts, and important to the community and world we live in.” said Ms. Priti Paul, Director, Apeejay Surrendra Group.
The first list of speakers announced on Friday also include author Upamanyu Chatterjee; historian Rajmohan Gandhi; journalist Ravish Kumar, feminist writer Ira Mukhoty; mythology expert Devdutt Pattanaik; nutrition and exercise science expert Rujuta Diwekar; Young Adult author Ravinder Singh, and novelist Shobhaa De.
Organizers announced that this year’s festival would also host the first edition of the Prabha Khaitan Woman’s Voice Award in association with Oxford Bookstore, to recognize fresh voices in women’s writings from India and announce the short list of The Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize to recognize book cover design and designers.
Net net, the New Year is likely to usher in delight to those who seek solace in printed letters and spoken words. Only condition: you need to be in Kolkata, then.
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