A growing need for instant gratification, an emphasis on extreme brevity and circulation on social media have come to characterise the literature of the millennials. With more and more youngsters turning to Instagram and Youtube to meet their literary needs, it's only fitting, perhaps that the Under 25 Lit Fest, now in its second edition, address the rapidly changing mediums of knowledge consumption. "These forms have changed, social media is the most preferred form of interaction. Young people tend to veer towards what goes viral online, which also sets the tone and standard for creative expression," says Anand Bhat, curator of the Under 25 Lit Fest which will take place in Bengaluru on Sunday.
Now in its second year, the festival makes its way to three cities across India in 2017, spurred on by their initial success. The venue was packed to the rafters in June 2016, with people spilling out onto the stairwells as they strained to catch the fun happening on stage.
This year, Aranya Johar, the teenage spoken word poetry phenomenon will make her way to Bengaluru from Mumbai for a special session , Margaret Alva, the former governor of Rajasthan will teach youngsters a thing or two about literature and politics and Varun Agarwal, entrepreneur-turned-author and darling of the millennials will make an appearance as well. "It's a good mix of young and more experienced writers," says Anto Philip, who co-founded the Under 25 Club here in Bengaluru along with Shreyans Jain. "This brings about variations in style as well - Agarwal is well-suited to the more easygoing reader, Preethi Shenoy's appeal transcends generations and Margaret Alva is a lot more erudite. The idea is to show audiences that one need not be confined to a certain style."
The day-long event includes conversations, spoken word performances, a panel discussion, an open mic and a gig to round things off. "The idea is to bring people who love reading, writing, poetry and music together and facilitate conversations between them. We also hope that people who want to grow in these fields find some inspiration here as well," Philip remarks. Online writers from bloggers to those who review content, spoken word poetry and slams, written poetry (this community thrives on Instagram) are their main focus points. "We're looking at creating a strong community of spoken word artists this year."
Unlike most other literary festivals, the Under 25s don't want to limit their focus to the books themselves. "We want the conversation to be a story in itself," said Philip. "Aranya Johar, for instance, will talk about her journey as a poet, instead of just performing her work. We're looking for the story behind the story."
The festival also includes panels and talks by the likes of Shinie Antony, one of the driving forces behind the Bengaluru Literature Festival and Atta Galata co-founder Subodh Sankar, whom Philip refers to as "pioneers of the community." The Bengaluru Literature Festival has always served as a benchmark, says Philip - "It threw light on what the ecosystem looked like for us, as we set about organising a festival of our own. They're not just coming from the perspective of a writer or a reader - this is an approach in itself, one that's hardly talked about."
To Anand Bhat, the curator, an avid lover of books, the shift to different mediums is as inevitable as it is sad. "Literature means micro fiction and slams just as much as it means a novel," he said. "Most other festivals focus only on books as a medium of literature but the harsh reality is that youngsters don't read them anymore. We have to look at different means of consumption."
What: Under 25 Lit Fest
When: Sunday, Aug. 20
Where: CoWrks, Old Madras Road, New Indiranagar
