Kolkata to witness the 8th edition of Chair Poetry Evenings this weekend!

Kolkata is set to welcome poets from across the globe as the eighth edition of Chair Poetry Evenings – Kolkata’s International Poetry Festival returns from November 28 to 30, 2025. Over the three days, poets from 13 countries will present their works in 16 different languages, reinforcing the festival’s spirit of linguistic and cultural diversity.

Kolkata's Chair Poetry Evenings come back for another season

The lineup this year includes Susan Rich, Simon Armitage, Mona Arshi, Sasha Debevec-McKenney, Bibhas Roy Chowdhury, Madara Gruntmane, Efe Duyan, Melanie Leblanc, Raka Dasgupta, Peter Verhelst, Gurtej Koharwala, Laura Giordani, Shirish Mourya, Jyoti Shobha, Basilio Belliard, Felipe Juaristi, Kira Wuck, Jonaki Ray, Minakshi Patil, and Raquel Santanera—a gathering that promises a rich exchange of poetic voices and traditions.

Events will begin at the Bharatiya Bhasha Parishad auditorium, followed by readings and discussions at the Samilton Hotel’s Cloud Tavern, and will conclude with the festival’s much-loved signature event, Poetry on the Cruise, held aboard a vessel on the river Hooghly. The inaugural evening will feature a folk and fusion musical performance by Urmi Choudhury, Sohini Mukherjee, and Prajna Dutta, adding a melodic dimension to the celebration of verse.

Hosted by the Chair Literary Trust, this year’s festival is supported by several international and local organisations, including the Dutch Foundation for Literature, Flanders Literature (Belgium), Instituto Cervantes, Embassy of Spain, Embassy of the Dominican Republic, Latvian Literature, Poetry Book Society (UK), Samilton Hotel, and Vivada Cruises Pvt. Ltd., among others.

Over the past eight years, Chair Poetry Evenings has featured poets from more than 30 countries, cementing its place as one of India’s foremost platforms for contemporary world poetry.

Eminent Hindi poet and festival director Tushar Dhawal Singh added, “Poetry stands as resistance — a quiet yet powerful act against dehumanisation, violence, and apathy. In an age ruled by noise and conflict, the poet’s voice becomes a bridge to understanding. Chair Poetry Evenings is a tribute to that diversity — of thought, of emotion, and of the countless ways humanity continues to sing, even amidst the storm.”

Poet and festival director Sonnet Mondal said, “At a time when the world is shadowed by wars and shrinking spaces for free thought, poetry remains a refuge for the human spirit. Kolkata, long celebrated as India’s cultural heart, continues to nurture this dialogue through art and literature. With this festival, we hope to rekindle faith in imagination and empathy — to let poetry remind us of what binds us, even in divided times.”

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