The sixth iteration of Nepal Literature Festival is just around the corner. The fest will be returning to Pokhara after a successful stint in 2016 and will take place in Pardi from January 27 to 30, the organisers announced at an ‘invitation ceremony’ in the Capital.

The ceremony saw presence of noted personalities from Nepal’s arts and literature sphere. During the event, the Pokhara-based folk band Kandara performed some of their beloved numbers such as Leka Ki Hey Maya, Hongkong Pokhara, and Tagaro ma Rumal Rakhi, and beckoned the attendees to take part in the oncoming event.

Speaking at the event, Bibek Thapa, the band’s front-man, said, “I am so glad to invite all of you to the Lake City Pokhara to take part at the festival.”

The annual festival, one of Nepal’s few literary fests, is being organised by the Bookworm Foundation. The present iteration is slated to see a host authors from Nepal and abroad in the likes of Ramchandra Guha, Durjoy Dutta and Uday Prakash, among many others.

According to the organisers, this year, the festival will, besides literature, also focus on the Nepali folk music scene and its linkage to literature. The panel discussion will see the likes of Nepathaya front-man Amrit Gurung and journalist Narayan Wagle, among others.

“We plan to entertain the audience with musical performances every day,” informed Ajit Baral, director of the festival. “We are still working on the schedule and will be giving it our best to make it a success.”

Former vice-chancellor of Tribhuvan University Kedar Bhaktma Mathema will be the keynote speaker at the fest, while a conversation between sociologist Chaitanya Mishra and columnist CK Lal on the topic ‘Public Intellectual,’ is expected to be another highlight at the event.

Madan Puraskar laureate Amber Neupane, who attended the ‘invitation ceremony’ on Monday, said the festival would be an effective medium for disseminating the power of literature and arts all over the word.

Stressing the importance of literary events like this one, Rabindra Adhikari, president of the Development Committee of the Legislature Parliament, said, “The festival  is going to make the city more vibrant and culturally richer. This will energise littérateurs and boost Pokhara’s claim as the cultural capital of the country.”