International Kolkata Book Fair returned to its city in all its glory

on Mar 03, 2022

The 45thInternational Kolkata Book Fair returns to its city after a gap of one year. Organized by the Publishers and Booksellers Guild, it is touted as the biggest in the world in terms of turnout. The 13-day book fair has Bangladesh as its theme country, coinciding with its 50th year of liberation.

It serves as a delight to all literature enthusiasts and bibliophiles as the much-anticipated fair began on February 28th and will go on till March 13th.
“This year, Bangladesh is our focal theme country as they are celebrating 100 years of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and the golden jubilee of their 1971 freedom fight and independence,” Sudhangshu Sekhar Dey, President, Publishers and Booksellers Guild, told The Indian Express.

According to the official website, Bangladesh Pavilion will be based on the iconic speech of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on March 7, 1971. Other historic moments of Bangladesh will also be showcased, and about 42 publishers from the country will set up across 50 stalls. Apart from Bangladesh, the UK, USA, Russia, Italy, Japan, Iran, Spain, Argentina, Mexico, and several Latin American Countries will also find a place in the international complex.

The inauguration of this book fair was done by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who made cultural ties with Bangladesh during the inaugural event. She further paid tribute to Bangabandhu, and respect to Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed.

The book fair, this year, features 900 stalls across various sections. “Out of these, 500 are normal stalls including the English bookstalls, 220 are stalls for literary magazines and 50 stalls are from Bangladesh. Also, there are several sponsored stalls and education institute stalls,” said Shri Tridib Kumar Chatterjee, Hony General Secretary, Publishers and Booksellers.

The book fair also paid homage to special prominent personalities who lost their lives to the pandemic. Talking about the same, Chatterjee added, “We have some lanes and roads inside the book fair named after these departed souls. Also, we have lost many journalists to the virus. We have named our press corner and stage after some of these.”

The book fair will also host the eighth Kolkata Literature Festival, where renowned personalities in the fields of art and literature will take part in panel discussions and seminars on contemporary issues. Considering the pandemic, the book fair will also be available as online live streams.

“For the first time in the history of any international book fair, we have digitized the book fair. You can see the book fair on our social media profiles. Anybody staying far can enjoy and join the book fair virtually,” Dey added.

Expressing excitement on the response, he added, “we are very happy to have the book fair after a gap of one year. We are quite happy to see lots of book lovers attending the fair on the first day of the fair. There’s a huge sale of books going on so we are happy to see the response.”