National Hyderabad Book Fair opens for book lovers

Hyderabad: The eagerly-awaited 35th National Hyderabad Book Fair raised its curtains on Thursday. Buzzing with excitement, book enthusiasts from across the city were seen exploring various books displayed in the book fair. However, organizers are anticipating that the rise in Covid-19 cases may affect the footfall.

Around 340 bookstalls of various publishers that include (Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers and Nava Telangana Publishing House, JP Publication) have been setup. The main attraction of the book fair this year it that a Writers' Hall has been set up for the first time where literary groups have arranged their own books to have a one-on-one conversation with the readers. Apart from this, a special stall 'Aksharayan' has been inaugurated by Women Safety Wing, DIG Sumathi in which around 1000 women authors books will be available.

K Chandra Mohan, vice president of Hyderabad National Book Fair said, "For the first time various central publication houses have displayed their books there's also a book stall named Mana Mukhyamantri Stall which provides books written by various authors on Chief Ministers. We received good response on the first day and hoping to see about 10 lakh people visiting the fair in until January 1."

"Keeping in mind the current rise in Covid cases, we have advised people to wear masks and use hand sanitisers. Timings of the fair is Monday-Friday from 2.30 pm to 8.30 pm and during weekends from 12 pm to 9 pm until January 1, 2023," said a member of the book fair.

Authors say

Vaishnaiv, 15-year-old and author of the three books Jaz Gang series said, "This book fair has given me a great platform to showcase my writing and my thoughts. My books are about three teenagers who found a time machine and travel back in time of Ramayana, as I wanted people to know more about our ancestors, their way of living and about Devi Sita."

Ravindra, 30-year-old, author of Telangana Toli Telugu said, "Books are the best way to explore reality and gain knowledge as cannot always find the correct information on internet which can be found out through books. But however, unfortunately the reading habits have been slowly disappearing due to rise in use of technology. My book is especially for competitive exams', as this book has complete information about Telangana."