Mumbai to host non-fiction book festival

Focussing on genres like business, management, leadership, health, fitness, politics, media and cinema, India's first non-fiction festival will be held in Mumbai June 21 to 23.

The three-day festival, India Non-Fiction Festival(INFF), is centred on the theme "Be Bold, Stay Real", and will see panel discussions, conversations with authors, book launches, and book signing sessions to engage book lovers thoroughly at the Nehru Centre in Worli.

"I have always been a great enthusiast of non-fiction as this is the format that mirrors real life happenings, circumstances and connects the reader to reality. Formerly, there was no festival solely dedicated to non-fiction works and so I decided to give the genre its due," said Kumaar Bagrodia, festival director, INFF, in a press statement Wednesday.

Among the prominent people conducting sessions will be author Devdutt Pattanaik, director Sanjay Gadhvi, journalist Tavleen Singh and food writer Tara Deshpande.

Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt will launch K. Raghavendra's "Directors Cut: 50 Major Filmmakers of the Modern Era".

Apart from these activities, the maiden non-fiction book festival will also act as a platform to create awareness and have discussions on subjects like Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, Transgenders (LGBT) in society and promoting philanthropy.

"This festival, with a unique focus on non-fiction, is a welcome initiative that would promote non-fiction authors and their ideas in India. This will give readers an opportunity to listen to, learn and engage with top Indian and international minds," said Vinay Hebbar, managing director India, Havard Business School Publishing.