Mumbai Fully Booked – A Unique Literary Event
(As it appeared in the January edition of the BandraBuzz, a local newspaper in Mumbai.) Literature lovers were treated to a unique literature carnival last month at Mehboob Studios, Bandra. Mumbai Fully Booked, the Times of India’s literary carnival was a resounding success. Large crowds of Mumbaikars thronged this historic site on the first weekend of December. There were many established writers, first-time and would-be authors, media personalities, publishers and journalists present on these days. The attendees of these events basically wanted to catch a glimpse of their favourite authors and media personalities, and possibly even meet them. International and deshi celebrities included William Dalrymple, Ekta Kapoor, Mohammad Hanif, Chetan Bhagat, Vinod Mehta, Tarun Tejpal, Bachi Karkaria and Vikram Chandra. Many were keenly interested in the intellectual debates between the authors such as “Sex in the City” where four authors discussed stories of love and sexual relationships ...