Date: 14-22 February, 2014
Venue: Pragati Maidan

The Delhi World Book Fair 2015 was recently held at Pragati Maidan. Spread among the various halls, the Book Fair had more than a thousand stalls from Indian as well as foreign publishers. Singapore was the focus country this year. Literature from North East India was the special theme.

In addition to the conventional collections of fiction, academics, essays, children’s books and regional literature, there were dedicated stalls for cookery books and comics. Government organisations such as Archaeological Survey of India, Sangeet Natak Academy, Asiatic Society and Doordarshan also had dedicated stalls that carried various gems from their archives. The National Book Trust (NBT) that happens to be the organiser, offered a membership (costing a modest Rs 100/-) that entitled 20% discount on their publications. There were also stalls with ‘Buy 5 books for Rs 100’.offers. Apart from a vast collection, the amazing discounts made people buy books in bulk.

In the present era of e-commerce, one doesn’t need to visit a book store. However the sheer joy of flipping through a book and lucrative discounts (in that order) ensures that Book Fairs are not passe. It was a fun sight to see shopping carts meant for groceries and provisions filled with books.

To facilitate the visitors, in addition to the venue, entry tickets were also available at various metro stations. And the metro perhaps is the most convenient mode of communication to the Book fair.