Sahitya Akademi’s Festival of Letters 2025 to Begin on March 7 in New Delhi

New Delhi: The Sahitya Akademi, India’s premier literary institution under the Ministry of Culture, is set to host its annual Festival of Letters from March 7 to March 12, 2025, at Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi. Union Minister for Culture and Tourism Gajendra Singh Shekhawat will inaugurate the prestigious festival, which is recognized as Asia’s largest literary gathering.

Eminent English playwright Mahesh Dattani will grace the Sahitya Akademi Awards ceremony as the chief guest, where 23 distinguished authors will be honored for their literary contributions across different Indian languages. Celebrated writer and scholar Upamanyu Chatterjee will deliver this year’s Samvatsar Lecture, a key intellectual highlight of the festival.

Bringing together over 700 writers from across India, representing more than 50 languages, the festival will feature over 100 sessions celebrating India’s rich literary traditions. A National Seminar on Indian Literary Traditions, scheduled for the last three days, will host discussions by leading writers and intellectuals.

Known as India’s most inclusive literature festival since 1985, the event will feature young writers, women writers, Dalit writers, North Eastern and tribal authors, LGBTQ voices, poets, translators, and publishers, alongside prominent literary figures from various disciplines.

Adding to the cultural vibrancy, a special day-long program for children, titled “Spin A Tale”, will take place on the concluding day. Throughout the festival, attendees can look forward to literary readings, discussions, and presentations by renowned authors, poets, and critics on diverse themes.

The festival will also include three evenings of cultural performances, featuring a flute recital by Rakesh Chaurasia, Hindustani vocal performance by Nalini Joshi, and a dramatic rendition of “Dastan-e-Mahabharata” by Fouzia Dastango and Ritesh Yadav.

The Festival of Letters 2025 is open to all and free for literature enthusiasts, offering an enriching experience of India’s longest-running literary festival.