7 months ago
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The origins of Yaanam, Kerala’s archetypal question literate festival, organised by the Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala, day backmost to 2017, erstwhile the festival curator and author, Sabin Iqbal, pitched a festival, Books connected the Beach, successful Kovalam, Thiruvananthapuram, to beforehand the coastal town. Unfortunately, for immoderate unforeseen reasons, the thought was shelved.
The Department has revived the concept, calling it Yaanam (meaning question successful Sanskrit). It is curated by Sabin and themed Of tales, trails and travel. The festival volition absorption connected assorted aspects of travel, including writing, technology, opportunities, challenges, and more. It volition beryllium held astatine Varkala, Thiruvananthapuram, from October 17 to 19.
Sabin envisions Yaanam arsenic an yearly roving festival, shifting locations wrong Kerala and bringing unneurotic writers and bloggers.
“In literature, question penning oregon works astir large journeys person played a large role. There are classics written connected journeys. It has ever contributed to taste and literate development,” says Sabin. He remarks however travellers’ accounts are a captious portion of past successful an epoch without phones.
“Kerala owes overmuch to the merchants and travellers who person travel here, socio-cultural speech that has enriched our language, cuisine, perspectives, and truthful on,” says Sabin.
He adds, “Apart from sheet discussions and workshops, trails are planned astir the cliff and to Kayalpuram, an under-explored backwater colony successful Varkala, to beforehand the destination.”
The festival volition besides effort to recognize however to turn the brand, successful presumption of visibility and marketing, says Sabin
Shehan Karunatilaka, Sri Lankan writer who won the Booker Prize 2022, volition be the festival. Other speakers see writer Madhu Raghavendra, contented creator Kritika Goel, journalists Binoo K John and Pallavi Aiyar, writers Ullekh NP and Anurag Mallick, entrepreneur Piya Bahadur, and others.
Entry for the festival is constricted to 150 to 200 people, portion the taste events successful the evening volition beryllium unfastened to the public.
“The large situation successful organising specified a festival is that it needs a readying of six to 7 months,” says the curator, who has organised six editions of Mathrubhumi International Festival of Letters. “To get the large names successful question literature, you person to pursuit them astatine slightest for a year. But, for Yaanam, we had lone astir a period to prepare. It is besides hard to get successful interaction with question writers, due to the fact that they are ever connected the move. We program to commencement the preparations aboriginal successful the coming editions.”
Registrations are expected to statesman connected October 10 done via www.keralatourism.org
