Graphic novels take centre stage

Amidst much fanfare the 20th edition of Delhi Book Fair greeted its avid readers, followers and cinema buffs with a theme centered on ‘Literature in Cinema’.

The theme reflects on the influen­ce of the literary works which had an impact on our celluloid depiction. As projected in the fair, Indian cinema has been inspired and adapted from literary works ranging from the first-ever full length silent feature film, being an adaptation of a mythological character Raja Harishchandra to Indian fondness for authors like Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay,
Rabindranath Tagore and William Shakespeare.

The Delhi Book Fair is being organised by the Indian Trade Promotion Organisati­on (ITPO) in collaboration with the Federation of Indian Publishers (FIP), which will go on till August 31, at the Pragati Maidan. Despite receiving a lukewarm response on the op­e­­­ning day, it witnessed a major footfall on Sunday. More than 250 publishers are participating in the fair with popular ones like Penguin India and Left Word giving it a miss.

“I am surprised to see the absence of publishers like Pen­­guin and Left Word as I did gain a reasonable deal from them last year,” said Rahul Jain, a Political Science student.

Among the striking featur­es, Harper Collins is exhibiti­ng for the first time in the Del­hi Book Fair. “I am happy to see Harper Collins showcasing their publications with pe­r­­sonal favourite of mine Amitav Ghosh’s books”, said Tarun Gopal, an MPhil scholar.

The book fair has also been witness­ing an impressive increase in footfall in the halls thronged with agents and publishers in the comic and graphic novel sections.

“Children connect more through visuals rather than text, thus graphic novels serve the purpose by exciting visual representations,” said Abhilash Kumar, a father of two.

 
 “We have received a positive response from the viewers as people from all walks of life like teachers, scholars, librarians and intellectuals are flocking at various stalls with parents being increasingly interested in knowing about innovative techniques of learning, studying through online medium and about mind games,” said Sanjay Vashishtha, Deputy Manager (PR), ITPO.

“In addition to it, several seminars, debates, elocution contests, career counseling and painting competitions ha­ve been organised to prom­ote the reading interest amo­ng children, students and others. As far as International publishers are concerned, countries like China, US and UK are participating in the fair,” Vashishtha added.

The fair has also  technologically gone a step further by developing a mobile app to facilitate visitors navigate venu­es and stalls. “A mobile app has been launched for the visitors in order to locate the position of stalls, pavilions, washrooms and other essential am­­e­nities at the venue. This will ensure a hassle-free experience for the visitors,” president, Federation of Indian Publishers (FIP), Ashok
Gupta said.

ITPO has also organised air conditioned buses, online ticket booking services and wheelchairs for the physically handicapped, ensuring that the visitors return with happy memories of the fair.