Book fair reminds a writer about his special identity: Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay

Kolkata: Eminent Bengali writer Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay said a book fair is a festival to celebrate literature and reminds a writer about his special identity.

Mukhopadhyay said he is reminded that he is a writer when he comes in direct contact with readers which happens at events like book fairs.

He was speaking at the inaugural function of the three-day Kolkata Literature Festival on January 26 where he was given the 'Samaresh Majumdar Smriti Samman' in memory of Majumdar who died last year..

Eighty-eight-year-old Mukhopadhyay, writer of classics 'Manojder Adbhut Bari', Manabjamin, Patalghar among others, said writing are reflection of grey things in real life, writing is a response of queries to one's inner self about life and surroundings "which we jot down on papers.

"I seldom forget about my identity as a writer and put myself in the place of the characters in my work, in the place of other people I meet during life's journey. And I become conscious about my writer's identity only when I interact with readers at events like 'boi mela' (book fair) which for me is nothing but a festival to celebrate our literature, to celebrate our writers and readers," he added.

Mukhopadhyay said he felt embarrassed to receive an award in the name of Samaresh Majumder, the writer of classics in Bengali literature, as he was much younger than him but departed at a young age.

He said epochal literary works by people like Majumdar stay forever even after their death.

Another eminent writer Sanjib Chattopadhyay - who inaugurated the literary meet along with Mukhopadhyay and two other veteran Bengali writers Manishankar Mukherjee and Bani Basu - said the number of people having assembled at the event makes him hopeful about the future of Bengali literature, printed Bengali works in the age of e-books and net.

He said to ward off the threat from the digital medium, writers and readers need the support of publishers of printed books.

The Kolkata Literary Festival which will continue till January 28 will showcase a diverse array of literary works spanning both fiction and non-fiction genres but with an emphasis on the rich Bengali culture.