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13th Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival commences in a Virtual Edition on 21st January
Kolkata, 18 January 2022: Oxford Bookstores, today announced the much-awaited 13th Edition of the Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival from 21st January to 23rd January. AKLF2022 will also mark the beginning of the Centenary year celebrations for the iconic Oxford Bookstores. The 3-day literary extravaganza will celebrate the written word with a splendid line-up of authors, journalists, influencers, thinkers, poets, international best-selling writers and Bollywood actors. AKLF2022 will focus on fiction, non-fiction, gastronomy, mental and physical health, poetry, politics, current affairs, parenthood, translations, history, children’s and adult literature among other themes, through 24 interactive sessions.
AKLF2022 will be live-streamed on the official Facebook and YouTube handles of the Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival as well as across Oxford Bookstores.
Speaking on this edition, Priti Paul, Director Apeejay Surrendra Group and Oxford Bookstores said, “As we grapple with the enormous challenge of imagining a post-pandemic world, we believe this is also a time for reflection and hope, of lessons learnt, and opportunities discovered. Oxford Bookstore and Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival have both utilized the digital space proactively through the past year, as a realm for carrying out projects and conversations, as well as for conceiving new ideas. We believe that an important uniting thread at this time is the cause of books. The space occupied by Literature and Books, whether on the ground or in the virtual world, will flourish. It is in this spirit that we present the 13th – and our very first Virtual edition of the Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival, which will importantly celebrate and usher in the Centenary Year of the much loved Heritage Oxford Bookstore”!!
Maina Bhagat, Director Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival and Apeejay Oxford Bookstores said, “The 13th Edition of the Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival, sets its sights on our fast-evolving world, and the changes that lie in store in the years ahead. Curated meticulously to meet the challenges of the Virtual format, with a view to continuity and innovation, and with delegate participation from across 3 time zones, this acceleration to digital connectivity has not stopped us from moving forward with this key initiative. The Festival is packed with thought-provoking, entertaining and informative sessions. Importantly, it commemorates and ushers in the Centenary Year of the iconic Heritage Oxford Bookstore – an integral part of the life and times of this great city. It will be our pleasure to share this journey with you in the coming months”.
The 13th edition of AKLF would host more than fifty national and international delegates from around the globe. Some of the eminent speakers who will be part of the thirteenth edition of Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival include bestselling and award winning author William Dalrymple; award-winning children’s author, Andy Griffiths; poet, novelist and journalist, Jeet Thayil; filmmaker and writer, Vandana Kohli; author, speaker and mythologist, Devdutt Pattanaik; columnist and novelist, Shobhaa De; French diplomats, Emmanuel Lebrun-Damiens and Dr. Christine Cornet; author, journalist and film critic, Anupama Chopra; journalist, author and columnist, Seema Goswami; film director, screenwriter and actor, Aparna Sen; renowned journalist and TV anchor, Vir Sanghvi; author, Dr. Kalyan Ray; renowned Bollywood actors like Kabir Bedi, Tusshar Kapoor, Jugal Hansraj; poet, journalist and dancer, Tishani Doshi; eminent journalist and authors, Sagarika Ghose, Nandini Sengupta, Nilanjana S. Roy, Samrat Choudhury, Sandip Roy; Journalist, Hospitality and Food blogger, Sourish Bhattacharyya; celebrity chefs, Sanjeev Kapoor and Vikas Khanna; veteran Indian theatre actress, Dolly Thakore; noted writers like Terri Cole, Shantanu Guha Ray, Saikat Majumdar, Karuna Ezara Parikh, Sudeep Chakravarti, Vivan Marwaha; celebrity performer and eminent radio jockey, Mir Afsar Ali; film director, Rahul Rawail; translator, Arunava Sinha; French novelist, journalist and historian, Irène Frain; global leading holistic health guru, Dr. Mickey Mehta; well-known food blogger, Indrajit Lahiri; to name a few.
Along with marquee sessions, the thirteenth edition of the Festival will also witness the announcement of the Shortlist of the seventh edition of the Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize by jurors, Dr. Alka Pande, Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Priti Paul, Shobhaa De, Kunal Basu and guest jury, Emmanuel Lebrun-Damiens.
About Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival
Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival, India’s only literary Festival created by a bookstore and Kolkata’s first literary festival, reflects our 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. Please visit www.aklf.in to know more.
About Oxford Bookstores
Established in 1919, Oxford Bookstore is one of the oldest heritage bookstores of the nation. It is India’s only bookstore to curate multiple literary festivals like Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival, Apeejay Bangla Sahitya Utsob and Hindi Sahitya Utsav. The Oxford Bookstore not only offers book lovers access to the very best books and ambience, but also India’s first of its kind tea boutique, Cha Bar. At Oxford Bookstores, success is measured by the smiles on millions of happy readers that the brand has served over the last 100 years. Each time you walk into our iconic store in Kolkata, its old-world charm leaves you enchanted and desiring for more. Our fleet of ‘happy to help’ the knowledgeable booksellers and conversant hosts, work round the clock to bring to our vendees and world-class reading experience. Be it through our books or our fine teas we abide by the brand’s motto – Much more than a bookstore – at every Bookstore.
Website: www.AKLF.IN | Twitter: TheAKLF | Facebook: TheAKLF |
Instagram: @theaklf | YouTube: The AKLF | #AKLF2022
