Jaipur Literature Festival?

Has anyone been to this festival? It looks amazing on their website http://jaipurliteraturefestival.org It's Jan. 21-25 ... just wondering how crowded it gets, whether it's easy to get in etc.

I note that William Dalrymple is a co-director, he's listed as a participating author for the 25th, and since I'm just reading his "City of Djinns" I'd love to hear him speak!

Thanks!

Hey smilingcanadian

I'm planning to go to the Jaipur Literature Festival, so let me know if you're going to be around Jaipur at that time.

I'm not sure how crazily busy it gets, but its reputation is definitely steam-rollering year in, year out... we had a linked South Asian Literature Festival in London a couple of months ago.

I love William Dalrymple too... I've heard him speak a couple of times, and he's fantastic. Engaging, witty, good-humoured and amazingly erudite. A very nice guy as well. After 'City of Djinns', I'd recommend 'The Age of Kali' and his latest, 'Nine Lives'.

I'm flying to India next week... nervous, apprehensive but extremely excited too! Expect the unexpected, is the name of the game.

Hi there,
Thanks for your reply ...and the book recommendations, appreciate it. We leave for India on the 18th and will be in Jaipur on the 24th. Hoping to attend the festival on the 25th ... when are you going?

I'm also feeling a huge mix of emotions about this trip (first time in India) but am mostly excited - and ready for anything!!!

Have a wonderful visit!

hey saudades and smiling, i am going to be at the jaipur literature fest too. looking forward to it. it's a bit like a big wedding, this festival.

hi all, i'll be there for all 5 days of the fest. looking for company and / or acco.
anyone interested please let me know. i'm 28, indian, work in mumbai in finance.

I go there every year. It is awesome. It was a bit too "commercial" last year but from what I understand, they have toned it down again this year. I am there this year too but getting hotel accommodation was nothing short of a nightmare. If anyone would like to meet up for a drink or two, do let me know. I am there from the 20th to the 23rd.

I love William Dalrymple too...
Latest I have been reading is on 'Last Emperor of India.'

Do they have book stalls selling books.As on a visit to some National Book fair organised by local Newspaper group in october, I found stalls suited more for Trade Fair, selling all kind of stuff along with few Book stalls. Crowd they attracted was certainly not Readers of any kind of books.

They have one major stall and a couple small ones. Mostly books by authors who are participating so that they can be signed. I find Dalrymple to be a pompous @ss - he fancies himself to be a Mark Tully.

Thanks for information.
My thoughts on Dalrymple could be similar to yours, but i give solace to myself as we have very few survivng writers of same breed.Mark Tully is anyway class apart.

My thoughts on Dalrymple could be similar to invidious'. Though, I won't go as far as calling him a P.A., I'd say he does seem to me a self-promoting type. Perhaps this is a necessary ingredient to organize such things, I don't know. :-)

I have been at the festival for two years now, and found it to be fun and fruitful for the most part, despite the wedding-like atmosphere, which I think is unavoidable given the tendency for pretentious display and networking that most people have.

I hope I can make it to the festival this time too. Finding accommodation is indeed hard.

How are they going to "tone it down" this year, invidious?

To people like me, from old school of thought, self - promotion may sound un-ethical but recently when was reading some current book on positive thinking, maintaining self confidence and taking it to hights of promoting self or singing your own praises any any given oppurtunity was highly desired other kind of people were labeled as persons with nagitive approch to life.

Lol. I belong to the old school though i am not so old.

Me too

self-promotion!

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