Kerala’s tryst with lit-fests

At a time when the discourse over the physical book versus its digital version rages and the narrative touches upon ancillaries like the rising cost of paper, slide in the reading habit, short attention spans and device-hooked millennials, Kerala is witnessing a flowering of all things related to books. It is evident in the increased numbers of literary festivals conducted over days to packed houses.

Ravi DeeCee, Managing Director, DC Books, the retail and publishing house, says optimistically, “The one big takeaway around books is the trend of lit fests in the State.” One of the pioneers of the contemporary style literature festival, he points to the rise of a new breed of writers in Malayalam who is garnering high readership. “These writers can survive on book royalty, which means that books and related activities are growing.” The Kerala Literature Festival, started by him in 2016, held annually in Kozhikode, recorded approximately two lakh footfalls over its four-day spread of 186 sessions with over 500 plus speakers this year.

Thriving reading habit

Writer and former chairman of National Book Trust and one of the founders of Kesari Memorial South Indian Literary Festival held at North Paravur, Sethu, says, “Started last year in memory of the great Kesari Balakrishnan Pillai who belongs to the place, the week-long festival had extremely good participation.” Kerala is the right place to hold literary festivals as it has a vibrant society and a very alive reading habit.”

The festival at Kozhikode, which he visited recently, was a “sea of people.”

Recalling the flavour and format of literary festivals conducted by the Kerala Sahitya Parishad where all tall writers would participate, he says these were literary movements, discussing strictly literary issues.

The difference he finds now is in the representation of interdisciplinary fields related to literature. Apart from writers, stalwarts from others fields — historians, anthropologists, artistes, activists and such participate.

“I feel that the lit fest in its new form is more inclusive and one in which anybody who is capable of thinking and debating can be a part of,” he says, waiving off a view that these may turn political platforms.

“A good majority, almost 60 % who come to lit fests are youngsters, which points to the fact that the youth is reading. Print is dominating and the digital e-book has not yet caught on as expected; the novel reigns and the short story is witnessing a resurgence,” says Ravi on the trends in the world of books.

The nature of the Palakkad Literature Festival has changed, says C Ganesh, Assistant Professor at the Malayalam University and writer. One of the members of the organising committee, he observes that the festival that started off as a purely literary event has grown to encompass social and cultural realms too.

The recently-held fourth edition included social activists, artists, bloggers, even Facebook activists. “These festivals now act as public spaces, which can facilitate interaction between people from different backgrounds. It is where art, theatre, literature and social activism blend,” he says. “Until the 80s, the focus was on pure literature. This, however, is the age of intermingling.”

A children’s fest happens side-by-side, which is relevant in that children are subconsciously drawn to the books and contemporary themes which are being discussed, he says.

With each edition, the number of visitors has increased, says Ganesh. “These festivals are as important to writers and artists as they are to the readers. There is an open discussion and they learn a lot from readers’ feedback.” The festival, which is organised by the Santhakumaran Thampi Foundation, is held every February.

The first edition of Krithi 2018 saw a seamless blend of books, cultural programmes and discussions. The festival in Bolghatty with a book fair across the Vembanad lake had 105 publishers spread across 165 stalls; small publishers getting a space along with the big names. “The objective of the festival was to stop the general complaint that people no longer read or are interested in reading. We wanted to give readers a great book-purchasing experience. The stalls were planned in a way that could be navigated easily, there were trolleys, so that they need not have carried heavy bundles,” says Joby John, Krithi co-ordinator.

The festival is expected to have received approximately 7 lakh visitors.

Getting the younger generation into reading was another of the event’s objectives and it gave away books worth ₹70 lakh to 38,000 children. Through the Education Department, the organisers brought in children from government schools, giving them ₹250 each to shop for their favourite books. “Big companies and even co-operative banks contributed towards this,” says Joby.

One of Kerala’s vernacular dailies conducted a lit fest in February in the Capital, an event that has been added to the State government’s calendar. The lit fest, held at Kanakakunnu Palace, saw the attendance of 5,000-odd people, exceeding expectations. Of the number of lit fests, Anupam Luthra, associated with the festival, says “Each festival has its uniqueness.” The events were an interesting mix—slam poetry, story telling, fiction reading—the effort was to sustain the interest. Encouraged by the response, they plan to conduct the event annually.

The Kochi International Book Fair held annually is also trying to change its format to include cultural and literary discussions, thereby going beyond the scope of a regular book fair.

Binoo John of the Kovalam Literary Festival is sceptical about the sustainability of such festivals. Rather than romanticising it, he raises the pertinent question of being able to raise money for such events. “The Kerala Tourism Department adding lit fests to its calendar doesn’t mean anything. It is hardly compensation for not giving cash. There is no revenue model,” he says.

Binoo would rather be cautious, “The more the merrier but none of the lit fests in Kerala will survive, because there is no corporate interest. Nor does the government have a well-drawn-out programme of support. Kovalam Lit Fest will also shut down soon just as most of the others. In Kerala no one will pay up to hear an author. If no big corporate has set up a factory in Kerala in the 25 years since reforms, why would it put money to keep Kerala’s cultural life alive?”

But as of now, lit fests are the flavour of the time.