HYDERABAD: The 12th edition of the much-awaited Hyderabad Literary Festival (HLF) will be virtual for the second year in a row, considering the restrictions imposed by the pandemic. The festival scheduled for January 28, 29 and 30 will not be held in an open space nor will there be any stalls. But, there will be an array of events, sessions and discussions live-streamed on YouTube.
“This year, we were hoping for a live event with public participation and interaction, but we cannot, owing to the current Covid situation. We did not want to try the hybrid (a semi-physical and digital) format either, hence the decision to go virtual,” said IT Secretary Jayesh Ranjan, member of the HLF organising committee, during a press meet on Tuesday.
HLF will host a live virtual drama where actors will participate from different parts of the country, and viewers can watch it in the comfort of their homes. “Actors will be playing their roles in a well-designed sequence that completes the drama without hassle,” Jayesh said.
The United Kingdom is the guest nation of HLF this year. Participation from the British Council, National Centre for Writing, Norwich, Arts and Humanities Research Council, UK are something enthusiasts can look forward to. Punjabi has been chosen to be the language of focus at HLF this year.
HLF will host several virtual exhibitions. Prominent authors and artistes like Divya Dutta, Kaverec Bamzai, Kavery Nambisan, Nandana Dev Sen, Remo Fernandes, Rita Menon, Ruth Vanita, Samir Soni, Siddharth Mallya, Sridala Swami would speak on the themes of Bollywood, diaspora fiction, food writing, gender, Kashmir, literature of 1984, mental health, spoken word poetry, and women in medicine. Renowned vocalist TM Krishna will render a performance as a tribute to late Ajay Gandhi, former Festival Director and Trustee, HLF.