KOCHI: The 23rd Kochi International Book Festival (KIBF), which began on November 29 at Ernakulathappan Ground, is receiving over 10,000 visitors daily. The 10-day annual event is being organised by Antharashtra Pusthakotsava Samithi. Discussions on various topics are the highlight of the festival which mainly focuses on the book trade.
On Monday, the Leela Menon Media Awards were distributed at the fest. The chief guest for the day was K Vaidyanathan, Chief Editor of Dinamani. He presented the Lifetime Achievement Award to senior journalist P Balakrishnan. A seminar by Indian Council of Philosophical Research was also held at the fest.
According to organisers, the festival which will conclude on December 8 has 210 stalls featuring more than 300 publishers. “Over 100 books will be released. Two hundred authors will also participate at the fest,” said the organisers.
A two-day Children’s Literature Festival will be held on the sidelines of the KIBF on December 6-7. Thirteen authors from outside Kerala will participate. The aim of the fest, according to the organisers, is to attract students to reading.
A meeting of short story writers on December 5, presentation of Leela Menon award and Balamani Amma award on December 2 and a discussion on the topic ‘Ancient Indian and modern philosophy book’ which will see participation by teachers from 15 colleges are the other highlights of the KIBF.
The festival will also offer opportunities for publishers and writers to debate and interact with each other. A meeting of malayalam writers has been planned on December 4 while a ‘Meet the Publisher’ has been arranged by the National Library Kolkata on December 5. A seminar on the modern theatre of Kerala and the 100th birth anniversary of Gupthan Nair will be held on December 5 and 6, respectively, as part of the fest.
Kochi Literature Festival
The Kochi Literature Festival 2019 will also be held as part of the KIBF from December 4 to 8. This will be the largest non-commercial literature festival in the country and will present an array of national and international literary stars along with emerging writers, said organisers.