In lockdown, literary world takes to virtual world

The world of literature seems to have taken a virtual turn because of the coronavirus lockdown, with many conferences and poetry gatherings now being held online.

'Rektha', for example, has held discussions on poetry by Shabana Azmi and Javed Akhtar. Historian Rakshanda Jalil brings the audience 'Gandhinama' in Vani Prakashan's online conference.

Neha Rai, a literary critic, is seen talking about the writings of Krishna Sobti and Amrita Pritam on the Facebook page of Rajkamal Prakashan.

The change, reflected on social media accounts of leading publishing houses and literary organisations, is here to stay and will be revolutionary for the literary world, experts say.

On the Facebook page of Rajkamal Prakashan, academic and food critic Pushpesh Pant discusses ladoos in his daily programme, 'Swad Sukh'.

Sumer Singh Rathore, editor (social media) for the publishing house, says 109 writers have performed 147 live sessions from March 22 to April 30 on its Facebook page.

He says these have attracted six lakh viewers.

The publication has decided to continue this in the third phase of the lockdown, which begins Monday.

It may continue even after that, the publication says.

Pushpesh Pant suggests it will be difficult for the world to return to the earlier ways of communication.

If you have a good phone with the Internet facility, you can connect with the whole world. Its reach has no match. You can go to any remote village, he says.

Pant says he was active on YouTube earlier too, but it has been a wonderful experience to connect with the audience on a regular basis.

It is not only interactive but also a cheaper medium, he says.

In his daily programme 'Swad Sukh', Pant talks about dishes ranging from 'ladoos' to samosas in his own unique style.

Jaipur's Bodhi Prakashan also started a series of live sessions.

The daily live session on Facebook began on April 17 and the schedule till May 19 is fixed. Every day, a writer talks about his works in this session, Mayamrig, owner of Bodhi Prakashan says.