“If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?”
Or so prophesied Percy Bysshe Shelley in his widely read poem ‘Ode To The West Wind’. Much to the relief of Delhi-ites, winter is finally gone and everyone’s favourite time of the year has arrived. Accompanying the blooming of flowers everywhere is an event that has become synonymous with the season, Penguin Random House India’s annual literature and cultural fest ‘Spring Fever’, which is now entering it’s 8th consecutive year to much fanfare and anticipation.
The open-air library at Spring Fever 2016.
Spring Fever 2016 will be held at the Amphitheatre, India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, over a period of six days from 15th March to 20th March, 2016. The event boasts of an open-air library (which will be open to everyone between 11 AM to 7 PM on all days) hosted during the day, covering an extensive array of titles published by Penguin and Random House. The space will later be turned into a literary hub in the evenings, featuring sought-after authors and events like panel discussions, previews of forthcoming books, sessions with highly acclaimed speakers and musical performances by popular artistes from 7 PM onwards.
The festival boasts of crowd-pulling events like ‘Incarnations’ in which commended author Sunil Khilnani will discuss 50 influential Indians who’ve played a major role in shaping our history, ‘Pakistan Is In The Eye Of The Beholder’ where Hussain Haqqani, Shashi Tharoor, TCA Raghavan, Hindol Sengupta and Neeraj Kumar will be in discussion. Author and social entrepreneur will also hold a session on the legacy and teachings of former Indian president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam called ‘What Can I Give?’
Bollywood lovers too won’t be disappointed with the events that are in the offing. Critically acclaimed actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui is all set to appear and discuss with the audience his journey in life and cinema as well as his highly anticipated book in ‘Nawaznama’. Shilpa Shetty Kundra, yoga expert Payal Gidwani Tiwari and nutrition and fitness expert Luke Coutinho will be present to talk about what is needed to stay healthy and world in the modern world in the event very aptly titled ‘The Great Indian Diet’. Twinkle Khanna, Mrs. Funnybones herself, will grace the event and even sign copies of her blockbuster book!
Sunil Khilnani in discussion on 50 influential Indians who shaped our history.
The penultimate discussion ‘A Piece Of My Heart’ will feature Emraan Hashmi and Sonali Bendre Behl, who’ll hold a session on parenting for the new generation. Rounding off this star studded list of events is none other than poet, lyricist and film director Gulzar who’ll conclude the festival with ‘Kitaabein’ where he’ll talk about books, literature and poetry.
A regular feature in the Indian literary calendar, we at TYS hope and pray (we’re all basically a bunch of bookworms at heart) that the Spring Fever festival continues to grow year after year, going from strength to strength. After all, there’s nothing better than a day (or six!) spent in the midst of like-minded intellectuals surrounded by thousands of books.
