Expanding Horizons: Day Two of the 17th Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival Explores Identity, Gender, Romance, Mythology and the Supernatural
Kolkata, Jan 12: The second day of the 17th Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival (AKLF) unfolded with sessions that probed questions of identity, belonging, and the margins of experience. Across Alipore Museum and Oxford Bookstore, Park Street, writers, activists, poets, and thinkers examined how we understand ourselves and others through the lenses of history, gender, culture, and imagination.
The day at Alipore Museum began with ‘A Long Long Time Ago: The Charm of Historical Fiction’, where Madhurima Vidyarthi, Tarana Husain Khan, and Harshali Singh, in conversation with Amita Prasad, explored how writers reconstruct the past through fiction, examining the delicate interplay between historical truth and imaginative storytelling. The session illuminated how historical fiction allows contemporary readers to connect with distant times while reflecting on present concerns.
This was followed by ‘Growing Pains: Gen Z and Preparing for Tomorrow’, featuring Riri G Trivedi and Vijender Singh Chauhan in conversation with Sujata Sen. The discussion addressed the unique anxieties, aspirations, and challenges facing today’s young adults as they navigate an uncertain future marked by technological disruption, mutating algorithms, and shifting social structures.
The following two afternoon sessions, co-presented with the French Institute in India and Alliance Française du Bengale, examined intimate and difficult aspects of human experience. In ‘Ways of Being: Body, Self and Culture’, author and social activist Arundhati Ghosh and best-selling French author Marie Darrieussecq discussed alternate approaches to love, relationships, and living with Ahona Palchaudhuri, questioning conventional narratives around intimacy, embodiment, and the construction of the self. The second afternoon session, ‘The Dark Side’, had award-winning French novelist Neige Sinno, best-selling author Anita Nair, along with academics and writers Nabanita Sengupta and Nishi Pulugartha, discuss violence and women’s experience with Jhuma Basak. This powerful session confronted questions of trauma, survival, and the ways in which literature bears witness to experiences that resist easy articulation.
Speaking from the festival grounds at Alipore Museum, Neeta Sreedharan, the AKLF Programming Head, said, “Day Two of AKLF 2026 reflects the spirit of the festival at its most expansive by bringing together urgent conversations on identity, gender, history, myth, the supernatural, and the imagination. With sessions featuring writers and thinkers such as Madhurima Vidyarthi, Riri G Trivedi, Vijender Singh Chauhan, Arundhati Ghosh, Marie Darrieussecq, Neige Sinno, Anita Nair, Priyambada Jayakumar, Shobha Tharoor Srinivasan, Anand Neelakantan and Satyarth Nayak, the day demonstrates the range and depth of literary engagement at AKLF. Thought-provoking discussions at Oxford Bookstore with Rohit K Dasgupta, Brinda Karat and others further extend these conversations. It is deeply heartening to see writers, activists, and young readers across venues and generations engaging with ideas that challenge, illuminate, and connect us, reaffirming AKLF’s commitment to thoughtful, inclusive, and wide-ranging literary dialogue.”
The festival then turned to the supernatural with ‘There Are More Things on Heaven and Earth’, where Hemangini Dutt Mazumdar, Himanjali Sankar, and Indra Das discussed supernatural elements in fiction with Oindrilla Dutt, examining how the uncanny and the inexplicable continue to captivate readers and writers alike.
The evening sessions at Alipore Museum featured ‘M.S. Swaminathan: The Man Who Fed India’, with biographer Priyambada Jayakumar in conversation with Shobha Tharoor Srinivasan, paying tribute to the agricultural scientist whose work transformed Indian agriculture and saved millions from hunger through her biography also titled ‘M.S. Swaminathan: The Man Who Fed India’. This biographical exploration highlighted the intersection of science, policy, and social commitment.
Contemporary matters of the heart took centre stage in ‘Rules of Engagement: Romance and Its Other in Today’s World’, where Shunali Khullar Shroff, Stuti Changle, and Sohini Sen engaged with Paramita Saha on the evolving landscape of romance, dating, and relationships in an era shaped by digital platforms, changing gender dynamics, and new expectations around love and partnership.
The day concluded with ‘Motherlode: Mining the Myths – What Makes Them Immortal?’, as Anand Neelakantan and Satyarth Nayak spoke with Priyadarshinee Guha about the enduring power of mythological narratives, their retellings, and their capacity to speak across generations to fundamental human questions.
At Oxford Bookstore, Park Street, the afternoon began with ‘For the Record: Documenting the Queer Experience’, where activist Rohit K Dasgupta discussed with Debjyoti Ghosh the vital work of archiving and documenting LGBTQ+ lives, histories, and movements in India. The session underscored the importance of visibility, memory, and representation in the ongoing struggle for rights and recognition.
This was followed by ‘Gharer Bairey: Women, the Nation and Public Life’, bringing together Aparajita Dasgupta-Sengupta, Subhashini Ali, and Saira Shah Halim in conversation with Kavita Panjabi. Drawing on Tagore’s iconic novel, the session examined women’s engagement with politics, nationalism, and public discourse, tracing trajectories from the freedom movement to contemporary activism.
The day at Oxford Bookstore concluded with ‘On Being Brinda’, an intimate conversation between veteran activist and politician Brinda Karat and Subhashini Ali, offering personal reflections on a life spent in public service, political struggle, and the pursuit of social justice.
The Oxford Junior Literary Festival (OJLF), held in collaboration with the Progressive Educational Techniques Society (Teacher’s Centre) at Oxford Bookstore, Park Street, opened with storytelling sessions for students from Classes 2 to 5 by Shobha Tharoor Srinivasan and Jael Silliman, who engaged young readers with narratives that sparked imagination and curiosity. This was followed by ‘Fun with History’, an interactive session with Norm Coady for middle school students from Classes 6 to 8, demonstrating how history can be made accessible, entertaining, and relevant to young minds.
The AKLF Poetry Café, presented in association with Alliance Française du Bengale at Alipore Museum, featured ‘An Evening of German Poetry, Milestones and Highlights’, co-presented with Max Mueller Bhavan/Goethe Institut, offering audiences a journey through German poetic traditions. The evening continued with multiple ‘Poetspeak’ sessions featuring Mahika Ray Goswami, Sufia Khatoon, Baisali Chatterjee Dutt, Vinay Sharma, Debashis Lahiri, Renu Roy, Jaydeep Sarangi, and Zinia Mitra, creating a rich tapestry of voices across languages and forms.
With sessions that ranged from the deeply personal to the broadly political, from the historical to the supernatural, Day Two of the 17th Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival continued the festival’s commitment to expansive, searching conversations about literature, life, and the worlds we inhabit. The festival concludes tomorrow, 11 January 2026, with sessions across three venues.