Why Not a Thiruvananthapuram Malayalam Literary Festival? It's about Time.

Ah, while on the subject of literary festivals, fellow Twitterer Ratna Jajaiah who has a devastatingly funny point of view on everything came with the quip "Why not a Jumritalaiya Literary Festival?" 

Yes, I asked why not?

In Bombay there are the following:

Tata Literary Festival

Times Literary Festival

Jaipur has, of course, Jaipur Literary Festival

Delhi has a Delhi Poetry Festival

and Hyderabad has Hyderabad Literary Festival

And, yes, there's a Kovalam Literary Festival too. (Don't ask me where Kovalam is? Because I am going to tell you it's in God's Own Country. If you ask me where it is, I am going to lose my temper, ketto chetta (hear big brother?)

With all these literary festivals I wonder if enough books are being published and read in India. And what about language writing? One needs to go to Kerala to learn about the hyperactivity of the publishing business there. There is a deluge of good books (with good writing) being published there. Ergo, nobody is interested in a Thiruvananthapuram Malayalam Literary Festival? What? My great, great, great uncle George Mathan would approve. Yes, he would. For hadn't he written Malayalam's first book of grammar and some of the finest essays in the language?

Anyone in God's Own Country listening? Oommen Chandy are you listening?

John is @johnwriter on Twitter and John.Matthew on Facebook. He blogs here. His Youtube Channel Page. His novel Mr. Bandookwala, M.B.A., Harvard.