Book Fairs
Coimbature Book Festival (www.codissia.com/)
Date: July
Venue: G.V. Fair Grounds Avinashi Rd Nehru Nagar West Coimbatore Tamil Nadu 641014
Organized by: CODISSIA INTEC TECHNOLOGY CENTRE Email: info@codissia.com
Key Contact: R.Ramamurthy, President
Coimbatore Book Festival’s goal is to build up healthy powerful and quality through sustained efforts, firm commitment and a system to review continuing suitability of policies and to analyse new ideas for continuous improvement.
Chennai Book Fair
Date: February
Venue: 8, Second Floor, Sun Plaza, GN Chetty Road, Chennai-600 006.
Organized by: The Booksellers and Publishers Association of South India (BAPASI)
Email: bapasimail@gmail.com
Key Contact: S.Vairavan- President
The Chennai Book Fair is the second largest book fair in the country. All major Tamil and English publishing houses participate in this fair. The 2021 fair had 578 stalls representing most major publishing companies in India and was held for 14 days, drawing over 1.1 million visitors. India’s 2019 Chennai Book Fair saw 1.5 million visitors spend $2.5 million on books in 2019.
Chandigarh Book Fair (www.nbtindia.gov.in/)
Date: February
Venue:-Sector-14, Chandigarh Punjab
Organizer: NBT India
Email: nbtexhibition1@gmail.com
Key Contact: Shri Md. Imranul Haque- Deputy Director
Hyderabad Book Fair (www.hyderabadbookfair.com/)
Date: December
Venue: Telangana Kala Bharati (NTR Grounds)
Email: hyderabadbookfair@gmail.com
Key Contact: Juluru Gouri Shankar-President
First Hyderabad Book Fair was held in the year 1985 at City Central Library, Ashok Nagar, Hyderabad. A few essential publishers and Booksellers participated in the fair. There was an enormous response from the book lovers and the people of Hyderabad. From the last four year it has been continuously running at Telangana Kala Bharati (NTR Grounds). Hyderabad Book Fair has become very popular throughout India.
Krithi International Book Fair (www.krithibookfest.com/)
Dates: February
Venue: Marine Drive, Kochi-682035
Organized by: SAHITHYA PRAVARTHAKA CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETY LTD.
Key Contact: P Somanathan-Vice President
Email: krithibookfest@gmail.com
Krithi is the international festival of books and authors, opening a vast world of literature for readers, budding writers and literature enthusiasts of different generations.
Kolkata Book Fair (www.kolkatabookfair.net/)
Date: February to March
Venue: Central Park Mela Ground, Salt Lake, Kolkata Organized by: Publishers & Booksellers Guild
Key Contact: Shri Tridib Kumar Chatterjee, President Email: guildpb@gmail.com
The International Kolkata Book Fair (Old name: Calcutta Book Fair in English), and officially Antarjatik Kolkata Boimela or Antarjatik Kolkata Pustakmela in romanised Bengali. It is a unique book fair in the sense of not being a trade fair—the book fair is primarily for the general public rather than whole-sale distributors. Many Kolkatans consider the book fair an inherent part of Kolkata, and instances of people visiting the fair every day during its duration are not uncommon. The fair offers a typical fairground experience with a book flavour—with picnickers, singer-songwriters, and candy floss vendors. With a total footfall of over 2 million people, it is one of the world’s largest book fair by attendance.
New Delhi World Book Fair (www.newdelhiworldbookfair.gov.in/)
Date: January
Venue: Pragati Maidan, New Delhi
Organized by: National Book Trust (NBT, India)
Email: nbtrightscell@gmail.com
Key Contact: Kumar Vikram
The New Delhi World Book Fair, hosted at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi, is India’s oldest book fair after the Kolkata Book Fair. The first New Delhi World Book Fair was held from March 18 to April 4, 1972. Attracting visitors and exhibitors from all over the world, the book fair is open to the general public but also a meeting place for professionals in the publishing industry.
The Bangalore Book Fair (www.bbpabangalore.org/)
Date: October
Venue: Palace Grounds Bengaluru
Organized: Bangalore Booksellers and Publishers Association
Email: info@bbpabangalore.org
Key Contact: A N Ramachandra – President
The Bangalore Book Sellers and Publishers Association was established in January 1988. The founder members to the association are M/s. Gangaram Book Bureau, Higginbothams, UBS Publishers & Distributors Pvt. Ltd, M/s. Satish Agencies. The present membership of the association is 110. The association has been conducting Bangalore Book Festival every year for last 6 years.
Vijayawada Book Festival (www.vijayawadabookfestival.org)
Date: January
Venue: Pwd ground Vijayawada-520010
Organized by: Vijayawada Book Festival Society
Key Contact: Laxmaiah – President
Vijayawada Book Festival is one of the most famous events in the country. Many people wait eagerly every year and walk in with a hope to get their favourite books.
Literature Festivals
Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival (https://aklf.in/)
Date: January
Venue: Allen Park, Kolkata
Key Contact: Ms. Priti Paul- Director Festival
Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival, India’s only literary Festival created by a bookstore (Oxford Bookstores) and Kolkata’s first literary festival, reflects the city’s vibrancy of thought, its engagement with the literary world at large and explores literature as part of our tangible and intangible heritage. Celebrate books, music, art, film, and more with the finest creative minds in the nation and globally, as events unfold at the city’s magnificent heritage sites.
Bhopal Literature & Arts Festival (ww.bhopalliteraturefestival.com/index.php)
Date: March
Venue: Bharat Bhawan Rd, Near Upper Lake, Krishna Nagar, Shymala Hills, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh 462013
Organized by: Society for Culture and Environment
Email: societyforcande@gmail.com
Key Contact: Sulakshna Choudhry- Director
Bookaroo Festival of Children’s Literature (www.bookaroo.in/)
Date: November
Venue: Bharat Bhavan, Shamla Hills
Organized by: Bookaroo Trust
Email: venkatesh@bookaroo.in
Key Contact: M. Venkatesh- Festival Director
Bookaroo – a children’s literature festival set up by Bookaroo Trust, a public charitable trust – endeavours to make books come alive through interactions between children and creators of books and storytellers. The festival that began in 2008 has, since, travelled to 13 cities (12 in India and one in Malaysia) and has completed 33 editions in 11 years, focuses on ‘Reading for Pleasure’.
Delhi Literature Festival (www.delhiliteraturefestival.org/)
Date: February
Venue: DilliHaat, Opp INA Market, New Delhi
Email: delhifestival@gmail.com , vinitanangia@gmail.com
Key Contact: Vinita Dawra Nangia- Director Festival
The beautiful historic city of Delhi, with a varied literary and cultural heritage, has its own three days Delhi Literature Festival (DLF) organized and celebrated in winter every year, around February.
Jaipur Literature Festival (www.jaipurliteraturefestival.org/)
Date: January
Venue: Hotel Diggi Palace, Jaipur (to be changed for 2021)
Organized by: Sanjoy Roy of Teamwork Arts
Email: info@teamworkarts.com
Key Contact: Ms. Namita Gokhale, Festival Director
The Jaipur Literature Festival, or JLF, is an annual literary festival which takes place in the Indian city of Jaipur each January. It was founded in 2006 and is the world’s largest free literary festival. The Diggi Palace Hotel serves as the main venue of the festival, with sessions held in the Hall of Audience and throughout the gardens of the Diggi Palace in the city centre.
Jaipur BookMark was conceived to run parallel to the Jaipur Literature Festival. In the 6 years since its inception, Jaipur BookMark (JBM) has brought together stakeholders of the book trade from across the world – publishers, literary agents, writers, translators, translation agencies and booksellers. It gives them an opportunity to ‘’talk business” through relevant sessions and focused roundtables, as well as space for one-on-one meetings and networking.
The Hindu Lit for Life https://www.thehindulfl.com/
Date: November
Venue: Sir Mutha Venkatasubba Rao Concert Hall, Chennai
Organised by: English daily The Hindu
Email: litforlife@thehindu.co.in
Key Contact: Dr Nirmala Lakshman, Festival Director
The festival has expanded its reach every year exploring fiction, non-fiction, politics, history, the arts, cinema, regional literature — in fact, all genres that celebrate ideas. Over the course of its journey, The Hindu Lit for Life has enriched the literary space in Chennai.
Kerala Literature Festival (www.keralaliteraturefestival.com/)
Date: January
Venue: Kozhikode Beach, Kerala, India
Organized by:-DC Kizhakemuri Foundation (DCKF) Email: info@keralaliteraturefestival.com
Key Contact: Poet, critic and former Secretary of Kendra Sahitya Akademi, Professor (Dr) K. Satchidanandan, Festival Director
Kerala Literature Festival (KLF), started in 2016, is an annual literary festival held in Kozhikode, Kerala, India. KLF is organised by DC Kizhakemuri Foundation (DCKF) with support from Kozhikode SaamskaarikaVedhi and various other organizations. The first edition of the festival was held from 4–7 February 2016 in Kozhikode.
Times Lit Fest (www.timeslitfest.com/)
Venue: Mehboob Studios, No. 100, Hill Rd, St Sebastian Colony, Ranwar, Bandra West, Mumbai- 400050
Email: timeslitfest@gmail.com
Key Contact: Namita Devidayal, Festival Director
Held during the month of December every year in Mumbai, the Times Litfest has grown to be one of the best literary festivals in the country. Brainchild of renowned journalists Bachi Karkaria and Namita Devidayal, the Times Litfest is a three-day long event that sees the presence of some of the finest speakers and writers. Held at the famous Mehboob Studios every year, this festival celebrates the richness of literature, cinema, and music in Mumbai and elsewhere in the country. Engaging conversations and debates also take centrestage in this festival. Some of the prominent names that have been seen in this festival include DevduttPattanaik, Arianna Huffington, Rajdeep Sardesai, AatishTaseer, Thomas Piketty, Anuja Chauhan, and Ruskin Bond among others.
Tata Literature Live (Mumbai Literature Festival) (www.tatalitlive.in/)
Dates: November
Venue: Tata Theatre–NCPA Mumbai
Email: anil.dharker@gmail.com
Key Contact: Anil Dharker Festival Director
Tata Literature Live! is Mumbai’s largest international literary festival. Featuring authors, poets, thought leaders and more it is an intellectually stimulating event for people of all ages. The types of sessions include from book launches, panel discussions, straight talks, debates, performances and workshops – for both, kids and adults. Includes a series of awards.
