From December 16 to 20 the 9th edition of the Kalinga Literary Festival will be held in Bhubaneswar (City in Odisha) with around 400 notables from the worlds of literature, cinema, media, and politics in attendance.

This year, the central theme of the festival is “India and the World”. “India writes in many languages and speaks in many more voices. To promote deeper inclusivity across the nation, our language, folklore, the ‘Marga’, and the ‘Deshi’ traditions will be showcased at the festival. The regions will have their pride of place, along with the province and the metropolis. Over the last 75 years, India has grown exponentially across all sectors,” spoken co-director Mr. Ashutosh Kumar Thakur.

The five-day festival will cover several dimensions of the interconnections between literature, freedom, Republican values, cultural diversity, and social equity.

The key sessions will be on topics such as democracy, cultural nationalism,  Generation Y, Indian Languages, publishing industry, mythology,  Media, Market, Children, Women, Transgender, Citizen Engagement, Cinema, Sports, Ethics, Discrimination, Revolutions, Peacebuilding, Conflict Resolution, and Harmony.

There will be organized several sessions one by one with leading experts. There will also be storytelling sessions that promise to add new flavor to the literary spirit of the festival. Apart from this, more than 30 new books and monographs will be released throughout the three-day festival. 

Four awards in literature will be conferred. These are Kalinga Literary Award (for a distinguished writer in Odia), Kalinga International Literary Award (for a writer in any global language), Kalinga Karubaki Literary Award (for women writers), and  Kalinga Literary Youth Award  (for a young writer in any global language).

“Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) 2022 returns with the promise of hope and optimism. Our return emphasizes resilience and the spirit of Rise. We are delighted to bring back the joy of literary spirit to the temple city Bhubaneswar. We welcome our delegates & performers and look towards a great festival.” Said, Rashmi Ranjan Parida, the founder-director of KLF.

Kalinga Art Festival, an exclusive art segment, will be held to showcase the best of the creations of contemporary artists. There will be cultural programs to showcase India’s art, culture, and literature on each day of the festival.

About Kalinga Literary Festival

Kalinga Literary Festival: India’s Largest Festival of Literature Spirit.

Kalinga the ancient Kingdom of present day Odisha has been a glorious phase in the history of India and the world. Kalinga excelled in art, craft, culture and literature. It excelled in maritime trade taking both culture and agriculture beyond the shores of the Indian subcontinent.

Despite several challenges, Modern Odisha is on its path to become a leading state in India in terms economic growth and opportunities created for the young and the future generations. This is an     opportune time to connect the old to the new and make bridges between the past, present and the     future. Literature, among others, remains the most powerful force to connect the glorious history, a pregnant present with immense possibilities and hope with a prosperous possible future. Odia     Language and Literature have been acknowledged globally to have a tradition that dates back to more than 2000 years. Since Odia became the sixth classical language and Bhubaneswar became a leading city in the Smart City Project, we have taken this up as an opportune time to celebrate Odia Literature, its history, its present, its possibilities and its national and global interconnections.

Odisha Media info Service (OMIS) Private Ltd and Odisha Diary Foundation (ODF) will organize the 9th Edition in Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) on 16, 17 and 18 December 2022 to celebrate this creative spirit of the Smart City of Bhubaneswar and commemorate the literary diversity it offers, bringing it in conversation with the best minds in the world of literature within and outside of Odisha and India. Academics, authors, political and social activists, law makers, government officials, corporate leaders, students and people from all walks of life will immerse in the vibrant atmosphere of the festival and exchange opinions on their favourite authors and works. Several eminent literary and film personalities are scheduled to attend the event.

KLF has emerged as an Annual Flagship event in the cultural calendar of Odisha and our focus is to rekindle the romance with literature and foster reading and writing habits, especially among the youth. It offers a national platform with a global appeal and bridges the gap between literature in English and other Indian regional languages.

Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) acknowledges the important role of other platforms, organizations and media houses in hosting such festivals in recent years across India. We have been at different Literature Festivals to develop mutual learning and strengthen existing networks among the living legends and the young minds of literature. At KLF like last three years people from different traditions, regions and cultures will represent the astounding literary diversity of our country. Literatures from different parts of India will complement the regional literature of Odisha and we are hopeful of a creative and productive dialogue between and among literary genres and traditions. We promise you an aesthetically and intellectually illuminating Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) which will be an eclectic mix of celebrity authors, thinkers, cine-world luminaries blended with inspirational debate which will nourish your creativity and thinking.

It is universally accepted now that our journey in this world is not merely a sum of material needs. We have a soul, a conscience and a mind that yearns for fulfillment, longs for love, craves immortality, desires admiration and needs emotional succor in times of trouble, distress and failure. Literature takes care of many such non-material and intangible needs and aspirations.