Of hope, happiness & lot of excitement

With butterflies in her tummy, Pune International Literary Festival (PILF) co-director Sonja Chandrachud is banking on lots of tea to help her with the nervousness and anxiety. While we don’t know about the tea, what’s surely going her way is the exciting line-up of authors who highlight the first-ever literary mela of the city and are more than positive about it.

Known for her frank talk and candid writing, Shobhaa De is beaming with excitement. “Well, let me put it this way: For me Pune is a very special city. I have a second home here. And PILF for me is not just another lit fest. As a patron, I feel I must contribute whatever I can to make it a success,” she said, adding, “We have some great names on board. The publishing industry is supporting PILF too. So are the top authors.”

Her own publishing imprint – Shobhaa De Books for Penguin – will be hosting an important session featuring authors Fazaa Shroff and Vandana Shah. Called ‘50 Shades of Marriage’, the session will discuss the tricky terrain of divorce from various angles, including the legal one.

De added, “I am looking forward to it greatly, as it will give me an opportunity to interact directly with readers.”

Sonja, author and co-founder of PILF, though is far from collected. Well, understandably so. After all she with Manjiri Prabhu is giving Pune the first-ever celebration of literature. She said, “I have butterflies in my stomach and hope in my eyes. I am really hoping that Pune comes out and enjoys something so special that we are creating for them.

Sonja said, “It is a boost not only for writers, but also readers, where they can come and enjoy this historic and joyous occasion. We have done our best and it has been a great team effort.”
Supporting team Sonja-Manjiri is author Hussain Zaidi, who wrote Dongri To Dubai. He is happy that the event is “something to encourage intellectual discussions and fresh ideas.” His feelings are seconded by author Kiran Nagarkar, who, by the way, knows the city fairly well as he studied at Fergusson College.

Excited by the intellectual stimulus that Pune provides, he is anticipating a good response. One can also expect an interesting session with him, for he has openly supported unconventional book readings, ones that are usually missing from many lit fests.