In association with the IIT (M), the Under 25 Club is hosting a lit fest for the youngsters of ages 18 to 25. “In changing times, staying relevant is the key!” shares Surya HK, the founder of Under 25 Club.
Stating that the Lit Fest with the tagline — Lit is Cool, is an initiative for, by and of the youth, he also reveals that the main objective is to celebrate the growing community of young readers, writers, acclaimed authors and literature enthusiasts.
With a group of interesting panellists like authors Shreekumar Varma, Timeri Murari, Anushka Ravishankar and Abhirami Sriram, the highlight of the event will be a discussion on , ‘Can fiction writing be taught?’
“The attention span of the youth is very limited because of addiction to social media and only quirky and interesting topics keep the young crowd hooked on. We invite speakers and panellists who are young or relevant to the young audience”, adds Surya.
Having also installed an open mic and musical concerts, the team believes in keeping the four-hour event fun-filled. “This is not a traditional literature fest with long seminars and extra-long speeches or lectures. All sessions are short and crisp and it’ll keep the audience engrossed”, shares Anand Bhatt, one of the organisers. He adds, “Participants can perform music, stand-up comedy, poetry recitals or other small acts to keep the event lit!”
Talking about modern literature — author, poet and playwright Shreekumar Varma says, “There is power, movement and urgency in today’s serious writing. There’s also very pretty, light stuff that’s floating around. And that’s the beauty of our times, that both co-exist, with dedicated — though not equal readership!”
Adding to his statement, another panellist Abhirami Sriram shares, “We live in a time of ‘publishing plenty’ — it’s a veritable mela (and often a melee!) of voices, perspectives and genres out there. I hope to reinforce to our young audience, the essential reason why we read— not only to discover new worlds, but also mirrors of our own inner selves.”
With an expected crowd of about 200, the fest will also provide a new activity called — Bring Your Own Book. “It is a book exchange session where you can build contacts, recommend and exchange books with fellow readers of the same mindsets and likes”, shares Anand.
Aiming high, the team hopes to create a big community of readers and writers and turn young literature enthusiasts into regular readers. “We want every participant to gain something out of the event. Value addition to the attendee is the ultimate goal,” concludes Surya.
