Hyd’bad Literary Festival kicks off to a grand start

Hyderabad: The 15th edition of the Hyderabad Literary Festival (HLF) that unfolded on Friday held a gathering reminiscent of the charm of old-world literary meets. This year, the focus was on climate change and the endangered languages.

The inaugural day witnessed a sizable and enthusiastic crowd, drawn together for a day of celebration and cultural revelry. Telangana Governor Jishnu Dev Varma inaugurated the event. Shabana Azmi was the special guest of HLF 2025, marking her 50th year in the cinema industry. The highlight was the flagship cartoon series showcased by Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW).

This time, the fest brought together various institutions like IIT-Hyderabad, Mongabay, and Sanctuary Asia, alongside renowned speakers such as Bittu Sahgal, Soumya Swaminathan, and Romulus Whitaker for workshops, panel discussions, and performances.

According to the organisers, HLF continues its tradition of focusing on one Indian language and one guest nation yearly.

This year, Sindhi is the Indian language in focus and Lithuania is the guest nation. The festival also strengthens new streams introduced last year, such as Indigenous and Endangered Languages, Climate Conversations, and Science and the City. Speakers Anindita Majumdar and Asif Qureshi, in collaboration with IIT-H, conducted the workshop on river ecosystems. They emphasised the importance of reimagining relationships with rivers and preserving their ecological significance.

CEEW sustainability cartoons showcased in the event were also a hit among visitors. With ‘What On Earth!’, CEEW has added comic relief to research and issues that may seem tough and technical so that people engage with them. Another eye-attractive stall that attracted a huge crowd was ‘Mapping Threads’.

“Every year, we eagerly look forward to being part of the festival, especially since the focus on endangered languages is such a great

concept.

This year, the spotlight was on Sindhi, a language that is also at risk of disappearing,” said Ramesh Reddy, one of the visitors.

“This is the fest that has consistently been ranked among the five literary events in India. It aims to provide a platform for artistic and literary expression while engaging with varied conversations,” said one of the organisers.