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Khushwant Singh Literary Festival
Celeb journos, authors pep it up on the concluding day
Nonika Singh
Tribune News Service

Journalist Sunil Sethi and socialite Bina Ramani take part in a discussion. Ramani’s talk on her book ‘Bird in a banyan tree’ made her recall the association with her ‘rakhi brother’ Raj Kapoor and the party she hosted that led to Jessica Lal’s murder. Visual artist Vivan Sundaram told a ‘new truth’ through digital photomontages of his grandfather Umrao Singh Shergil and aunt Amrita Shergil; and (right) actor Rahul Bose during a session. Karthika VK (left) with Louise Khurshid, whose book ‘Travails with Chachi’ touches upon issues that ail as well as define India by way of short stories. Photos: Pradeep Tewari

Kasauli, October 12
Short and snappy, yet interesting sessions marked the culmination of the third edition of the Khushwant Singh Literary Festival at Kasauli Club.

Political heavyweights, celebrity journalists and distinguished authors lent just the right degree of lustre and substance to the festival. While some big names such as Upamanyu Chaterjee and William Dalrymple may not have kept date with the festival, it created enough buzz and enthusiasm among the visitors who turned up in large numbers. Early morning sessions were packed to capacity.

The pace was set by “The Anchors Adrenaline Stories” session, chaired by well-known journalists Bachhi Karkaria and Rajdeep Sardesai. Their engaging interface not only had audiences in a thrall but also interested them enough to ask intriguing questions. Equally riveting was the session on Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw. Former Brigadier Behram Panthaki and his wife Zenobia, authors of “Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw: The Man and His Time”, regaled those present with many anecdotes that provided insight into the greatness of the man.

Stories can be told not only through words but also images, proved internationally acclaimed visual artist Vivan Sundaram. Through digital photomontages of his grandfather Umrao Singh Shergil and his famous aunt Amrita Shergil, the renowned painter told what he calls a new truth.

Truths and some hard-hitting political ones came out in yet another session about Rajdeep Sardesai’s upcoming book: “2014: The Election that changed India”. This particular session once again saw multifaceted Suhel Seth at his humorous and candid best as his digs did not spare even Sardesai. Many pertinent observations about the historic elections were made. While his book will map the facts and figures behind BJP's emphatic victory, the session, too, gave sense of it. Sardesai dwelt on how the party harnessed the social media to win young voters who voted 2:1 in favour of the BJP. From real politics to political fiction, the spotlight shifted to Lousie Khurshid's book “Travails with Chachi”that touches upon a host of issues that ail as well as define India by way of short stories. Political fiction, she averred, must stand the test of times and some of her stories, like the one on the mania that grips sane men and women in the South making them worship actors as Gods and Goddesses, did seem to have hit the right chord on that count.

How time has influenced the story of publishing landscape in the country was yet another thoughtful session. With new winds of technology driving the course of publishing, noted writer and columnist Shobhaa De spoke of the possibility of a Twitter novel too. Socialite Bina Ramani’s talk on her book “Bird in a banyan tree” made her recall the association with her “rakhi brother” Raj Kapoor as well as the controversial party she hosted that led to Jessica Lal’s murder.

Held at the verdant setting of Kasauli hills, ecology had to be a significant aspect of the fest. And it was when the crucial role of citizen scientist in keeping tabs on vanishing species was discussed.