It’s time that the world of words realised the maximum potential of Maximum City as a platform for eclectic subjects. Traditionally, Mumbai has been perceived as India’s banking and commercial hub, where India Inc meets Dalal Street. Now, comes a festival that promises to train the spotlight on geopolitics and the city’s rich history and culture.
The inaugural edition of MaxCity VoW Literature Festival is being held at Mumbai’s the National Gallery of Modern Art and Kitab Khana from March 1st to 2nd.
News9 Plus Editor Sandeep Unnithan spoke with the festival’s co-founders Probal Dasgupta and Commodore Srikant Kesnur on the News9 Plus show, on the provenance and the concept behind the festival.
“In a world connected by technology, trade, maritime issues, wars, history, and economics, India stands at the crossroads of opportunities and challenges. Mumbai, a prominent seaport, is India’s gateway to the world and a platform for deliberations on books and ideas,” says Dasgupta.
“We already have several literature festivals across India on different subjects, which focus on fiction, non-fiction, etc. We wanted to repurpose the aim of literature festival towards a so a set of areas which are all connected to India, in terms of its connectedness to the world, in terms of its interests, to the nation. These include, geopolitics, business history, maritime affairs, and soft power issues such as food and films, etc,” explained Dasgupta. Going with the theme, ‘Issues that Engage Us as a Nation’ the idea is to explore India’s connectedness with the world. “In the process of doing that, we chose Mumbai because it is the gateway to the world through the waters of the Indian Ocean,” adds Dasgupta.
Watch the complete conversation on the News9 Plus show here: https://youtu.be/xbsT7OJ5fuA?si=cGzGHP7zfcYBCRG0
Mumbai is India’s economic capital and entertainment capital. So far geopolitics appeared to be New Delhi’s preserve. Now, we have a unique literature festival that aims to change things in Maximum City.
So, how does the festival aim to change the discourse of geopolitical conversations, which are usually discussed in Mumbai only through films and Web Series?
“Why should people in Delhi alone decide on strategy? I think I think Mumbai needs to do that. Dubai needs to do that. Being the financial capital of the country, the municipal corporation with the largest budget, Mumbai should also have a strategic culture, and should be asking these sort of questions,” is Kesnur’s view.
The literature festival will feature prominent authors that include former NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant presenting his latest book, How India Scaled Mount G20. Other notable book launches include AVM Arjun Subramaniam’s Shooting Straight, Lt Gen Y.K. Joshi’s Who Dares Wins (a Vir Chakra awardee for his role in the Kargil War), and K.V. Ramesh’s Lights, Camera, War!
The fest will also feature another gallantry award winner and author—Rear Admiral Santosh Kumar Gupta, a Maha Vir Chakra awardee of the 1971 war.
Celebrated authors such as Amish Tripathi, Sanjeev Sanyal, T.S. Tirumurti, Sanjeev Chopra, Smriti Ravindra, Shabnam Minwalla, Probal Dasgupta, food writer Rashmi Uday Singh, Hindol Sengupta, and publishers Milee Ashwarya and Pramod Kapoor, along with senior journalists Sandeep Unnithan and Tamal Bandyopadhyay, will speak at the festival.
Joining them are governance experts Brijesh Singh and Ashwini Bhide, along with well-known personalities such as Lt Gen P.S. Pannu (senior advisor to Space SIA), columnist Commodore Srikant Kesnur, historian Shiv Kunal Verma, actor Avantika Akerkar, and mythologist E. Banerjee, making for a diverse lineup. Cdr Abhilash Tomy, the first Indian to complete a solo, non-stop circumnavigation of the world under sail, will also speak at the litfest.
The MaxCity VoW Literature Festival, being held at Mumbai’s the National Gallery of Modern Art and Kitab Khana from March 1st to 2nd, brings together an eclectic bunch of subjects and authors. Lifestyle Lifestyle News -Fashion Trends, Beauty Tips, Celebrity Party News, Relationship advice, Travel and Food Tips
