In its 13th year, Bangalore Literature Festival stands as a beacon of literary celebration and cultural exchange

The Bangalore Literature Festival (BLF) returns to the city this week, poised to celebrate its 13th edition with its literary offerings defining this much-loved event. Since its inception in 2012, BLF has embraced how our Garden City continues to weave its literary diversity into a global narrative. Over the years, this annual event, born out of a non-profit trust, has welcomed over 1,500 authors and speakers from India and beyond, firmly establishing itself as a thought-provoking hub for literature and life. “The overarching theme is new, new, new. What people have been writing, what people have been reading, the headlines, what’s going viral. The festival goes the way of what’s happening. Everything that fires us up is there in the latest books,” opens co-founder and curator Shinie Antony.

The festival’s growth is apparent in its evolution over the years. Footfalls have surged and the event now sprawls across five venues, up from its initial two. “The BLF team has also introduced unique initiatives like LitMart, a pitching platform for aspiring writers and ScreenLit, which bridges the worlds of literature and screenwriting. The festival has grown beyond its organisers — it belongs to Bengaluru,” Shinie shares. This year, Nobel laureates Abhijit Banerjee and Venki Ramakrishnan and Booker Prize winner Kiran Desai take centre stage, alongside Nigerian-born UK writer Irenosen Okojie and Sri Lankan-born UK author Romesh Gunesekera.

Representing Bengaluru are celebrated names like Jayant Kaikini, Sudha Murty and Jeet Thayil, who bring their unique perspectives to the festival. In addition to literature, the event embraces music and storytelling, with singer Harpreet leading a session titled Ranjha Ranjha and appearances by Parvathy Thiruvothu and violin maestro L Subramaniam.

Adding a global flair, the festival will welcome ambassadors from Australia, Spain and the Dominican Republic, with Dominican envoy David Puig sharing his poetry. A cross-cultural collaboration, The Queer Caravan will feature performances and stories from France, Germany and India. The diversity of genres and formats is a hallmark of BLF and this year’s programme spans fiction, non-fiction, poetry, journalism, performances, book awards and interactive pitching sessions. The festival also honours regional voices, with dedicated sessions in Kannada, Hindi, Urdu, Gujarati and Malayalam.

The festival opens on a soulful note with a carnatic vocal recital by Sumitra Nitin, Mathur R Srinidhi, Adamya Ramanand and the Natyasruti Music Ensemble. Other highlights include Prajakta Koli’s most-awaited romance book Too Good To Be True, Ed Smith’s Luck and Making Decisions and engaging sessions including Bangalorean: Around the City in 80 Vox, Dust Child and The Mountains Sing by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai, Cooking to Save Your Life and India’s and Most Legendary Restaurants, to name a few.

Entry free. December 14 & 15. At Lalit Ashok Bangalore, Seshadripuram.