Kerala Literature Festival

Kerala Literature Festival (KLF), founded in 2016, is an annual literary festival held in Kozhikode, Kerala, India. KLF is organised by DC Kizhakemuri Foundation (DCKF) with support from Kozhikode Saamskaarika Vedhi and various other organizations. The festival was first held from 4 to 7 February 2016 in Kozhikode. Poet, critic and former Secretary of Kendra Sahitya Akademi, K. Satchidanandan, is its director. The logo for the festival was designed by artist Riyas Komu.[1]

Kerala Literature Festival
GenreLiterary festival
Dates16 to 19 Jan, 2020
Location(s)Kozhikode Beach, Kerala, India
Years active2016–present
Patron(s)DC Kizhakkemuri Foundation
Websitehttp://www.keralaliteraturefestival.com/

The four-day festival includes debates and discussions, cultural activities, cartoon and painting exhibitions, mini film fests and a cookery show.

History, timeline

2020

The fifth edition was held from 16 to 19 January 2020, at Kozhikode Beach, with the presence of artists, actors, celebrities, writers, thinkers, and activists, discussing literature, art, cinema, culture, dance, music, environment, science, and technology. Cultural nights include fireside chats by acts and performing artists from around the world. Speakers at the previous editions include Arundhati Roy, Richard Stallman, Noam Chomsky (Video), Yuval Noah Harari (Video), Sadhguru, Romila Thapar, Ramachandra Guha, Shashi Tharoor, Rakesh Sharma, Rishi Kapoor, Chetan Bhagath, Karan Thapar, Rajdeep Sardesai, Sobhaa De and Sagarika Ghose. In addition to literature, topics include environment and climate change. Spain was the guest nation, and Tamil literature was featured. The festival is open to the public and is non-exclusive and an open platform for discussions and idea exchanges.

2019

The fourth edition of the festival was held from 10–13 January 2019, at Kozhikode Beach.[2]

2018

The third edition of the festival was held from 8–11 February 2018, at Kozhikode Beach. KLF 2018 was inaugurated by Arundhati Roy, MT Vasudevan Nair and Prakash Raj. The event was supported by the Kerala State Government and the Kerala Tourism Department, and by the Kozhikode Municipal Corporation and the district administration. The Kochi Muziris Biennale was an integral part of the festival. Guest nation for the year was Ireland (represented by Gabriel Rosenstock, Paddy Bushe, Liam Carson, Alan Titley, Amanda Bell, and Conor Kostick). Romila Thapar, Ashish Nandy, Sagarika Ghose, Rajdeep Sardesai, Noam Chomsky, Rishi Kapoor, Shani Prabhakar, and Benyamin participated.

[3]

2017

The second edition of Kerala Literature Festival held from 2–5 February 2017, at Kozhikode Beach.[4][5]

Noted Malayalam short story writer and novelist Paul Zacharia inaugurated KLF 2017.[6] Highlight of KLF 2017 was the interaction between Sadguru jaggi vasudev, Sashi Kumar and Manju Warrier.[7] Cartoons of O. V. Vijayan were also exhibited in 2017 Kerala Literature Festival.[8] Over 300 writers from across the world took part in KLF 2017.The writers from abroad include South African writer Ari Sitas, and British-Pakistani writer Qaisra Shahraz, Slovene writer Evald Flisar, translator and editor of numerous publications Alexandra Büchler of Literature Across Frontiers, Portuguese translator Bruno Viera Amaral and poet and literary curator Nia Davies from Wales, United Kingdom.The sessions held in four venues titled Ezhuthola, Aksharam, Thulika, and Vellithira.[9][10]

The second edition of the festival introduced a programme for students, 'Student KLF', promoting knowledge, literature, art and culture. The event included open discussions with authors on contemporary topics.[11]

The Kerala Literary Festival was conceived as a platform mainly meant for Malayalam writers, social worker and artists to meet, discuss and debate on various topics.

2016

The festival's 2016 Organizing Committee was headed by Mayor of Kozhikode V. K. C. Mammed Koya as chairman, Ravi Deecee as Chief Coordinator, and A K Abdul Hakeem as General Convenor.

At KLF 2016 writers and speakers included M T Vasudevan Nair, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Anand, Taslima Nasrin, Ashok Vajpeyi, Khadija Mumtaz, Indu Menon, M. Mukundan, Sarah Joseph, Githa Hariharan, Meena Kandasamy, Pratibha Ray, TD Ramakrishnan, T Padmanabhan, Subhash Chandran, Leena Manimekalai and Girish Kasaravalli, to name a few.[12]

In 2016 writer M. Mukundan said at the festival that writers' freedom was very limited in our society. "I was accused of misleading the younger generation through my novels. Is it because of my novels that Kerala is the biggest consumer of liquor now?[13]

  • Anita Nair and K R Meera at KLF 2016
  • K. Satchidanandan with Taslima Nasrin at KLF 2016
  • Dileep Raj, Civic Chandran, C S Chandrika and Rekha Raj at KLF 2016
  • Gita Hariharan at KLF 2016
  • Shahina K Rafiq with Meena Kandasamy at KLF 2016
  • M T Vasudevan Nair at KLF 2016
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References
  1. "Kozhikode to Host Inaugural Kerala Literature Festival – KERALA EDITOR".
  2. "Curtain down on literature fete". 12 February 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018 – via www.thehindu.com.
  3. "Second edition of Kerala Literature Festival concludes- Deccan Chronicle".
  4. "Kerala Literature Festival (KLF) 2017 set to begin on February 2; there is something for everyone-International Business Times".
  5. "Kozhikode beckons lovers of letters – manorama online".
  6. "Significance of 2nd Ker Lit Fest exemplary, beyond explanation- Daily News and Analysis".
  7. "Kerala Literature Fest begins in Kozhikode today- Deccan Chronicle".
  8. "Kerala Literature Festival: A window to OV Vijayan's cartoons- Times Of India".
  9. "Writers, activists from India, abroad to take part in Kerala Literature Festival- Web India".
  10. "Kerala literature fete from Thursday- The Hindu". Archived from the original on 23 September 2010.
  11. "Kerala Litearture Festival draws huge crowds- The Hindu".
  12. "Kozhikode All Set For Kerala Literature Festival– Kerala Editor".
  13. "Writer's freedom of expression is limited, says M. Mukundan – The Hindu".
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