Literary extravaganza with 350 stalls and 10 lakh visitors
HYDERABAD: With over 350 stalls and more than 10 lakh footfall, the ten-day Hyderabad Book Fair has been grander in every sense this year.
The 37th edition of the Hyderabad Book Fair, which started on December 19 on a high note with Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy inaugurating it, attracted a huge crowd from book and literature lovers to bibliophiles from all age groups.
Coming to the collection of books, it is a plethora of genres—almost any genre one could think of: fiction, non-fiction, spirituality, comics, academic books, self-help, and healing books. The stalls are filled with books in multiple languages, including Telugu, English, Tamil, and other regional languages, by several authors from India as well as worldwide, leaving visitors overwhelmed with difficult choices on which books to buy.
Besides private stalls, government stalls such as the Tribal Welfare Department, Culture Department, and Education Department are also present.
Speaking to TNIE, Dr Yakoob, president of the Book Fair, said, “It was the first time in the history of the Book Fair, in the last 36 years, that the CM inaugurated the fair, which gave a strong start and attracted a bigger crowd. So far, at least 10 lakh people have visited the fair, which is a very good response compared to previous editions.”
He added, “Moreover, this year we made better arrangements for both the visitors and the stalls. The ground has been covered with a groom mat for the convenience of visitors, thus avoiding the dust issue and making walking easier. We are also providing free evening snacks to stall owners.”
K Balareddy, vice-president of the Book Fair, stated that it was the first time an advisory committee was formed to oversee the functioning of the fair, with renowned personalities in the committee.
Stall owners said that the sales were much better than the previous fair due to the large number of visitors. Mohammed Faheemuddin, a book stall owner, told TNIE, “I am happy with the sales at this year’s fair. The profit was good as we saw a huge crowd from day one itself and sold more books than we had expected.”
A nine-year-old girl, Amayra from Jubilee Hills, while exploring a collection at a stall, said that she enjoyed the cartoon comics and bought some books to add to her collection.
Meanwhile, the archives collection at the State Central Library-Hyderabad stall attracted many visitors, as people stopped by to take a glimpse of ancient scriptures and artefacts on display.
Besides book stalls, daily literacy sessions and new book releases were also a part of the fair. It also has two stages for discussion, one of which is an amphitheatre, which is another center of attraction.
A donation box has also been set up for those who wish to donate books, which will be sent to libraries and schools in rural areas. On Friday, a special Qawwali program was arranged in the evening, which doubled the excitement of the people.
The state governor, Jishnu Dev Verma, will be visiting the fair for the closing celebrations on Saturday, with the Book Fair concluding on December 29.