HELLO! India Exclusive: In literary seventh heaven at the Dehradun Literary Festival 2025

Every lit fest has its own character.

This one, set on the iconic Doon School campus, spoke to the lively, optimistic soul of students. The festival team curated a delightful lineup of pathbreakers, educators, authors, activists, and culture enthusiasts, all addressing young, energetic minds trying to figure out their lives in a time of tempestuous change. The theme was, tellingly, *Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam*—the world as one family.

DDLF founder Samraant Virman opened the festival on Children’s Day, seeing it as “symbolic of the imagination, learning, and curiosity the festival celebrates.” On Day One, powerhouse speaker Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, former Chief Justice of India, spoke in the session *We, The Students of India*. While he touched upon leadership by example and urged students to draw learnings from failure and growth, the conclusive idea was the need for an adaptive mindset, given the era we live in.

The session *Apna Apna Normal – Our Lives, Our Stories*, featuring the *Sitaare Zameen Par* team—Gurpal Singh, Divy Nidhi Sharma, Manuj Sharma, and Ashish Pendse—brought heartfelt reflections on cinema, learning, and inclusivity. Festival Director Saumya Kulshreshtha steered the conversation into confessional territory, with Ashish Pendse asking the audience to find their own compass of “normal” and help others find theirs. Gurpal Singh spoke about the transformative experience of working with ten special actors, while Nidhi Sharma shared how making the film changed his understanding of disability. Manuj Sharma confessed that while he initially wondered if he could teach acting to special actors, in the final analysis, it was the children who taught him—with their innocence, warmth, and sincerity.

Also touching upon mass storytelling were doyennes Nandita Das and Bhawana Somaya in the session *Alternative Act – Cinematic Storytelling with a Difference*, where Das highlighted the struggles faced by independent cinema and filmmakers who prioritise authenticity. Somaya illuminated how deeply cultural and traditional ideas infiltrate mainstream storytelling.

Equally inspiring was filmmaker Leena Yadav, who spoke about her multiple international award-winning film *Parched*, which portrays how rural women in Rajasthan endure daily physical and emotional abuse at the hands of drunk husbands. Without education or family support, “they are beaten black and blue every single day.” I congratulated her on finding both the resources and collaborators to make the film—neither of which came easily. She eventually married her director of photography, Aseem Bajaj. “The biggest shock for me was screening this film across the world—Switzerland, Australia, the US—where women told me this was happening to them as well!” Leena has also faced numerous death threats from angry men from communities in Rajasthan who felt exposed in their chauvinism and cruelty.

A session I found particularly inspiring was *Education With Heart: Rethinking the Indian Classroom*, featuring former Miss India, actress, parliamentarian, and now educationist Swaroop Sampat. “Children need to be allowed to assert their own points of view, not be suppressed. Modern society focuses on EQ and IQ, but in India, we are uniquely placed to guide their Dharmic Quotient and Spiritual Quotient—especially in a time of AI, where machine intelligence will handle mundane data processing. I tell policymakers: let the classroom be a democracy, where the teacher is a guide and mentor, but with final authority—like a Prime Minister.” She received a warm round of applause, with many students later expressing their fears of a jobless future amid AI-driven change.

The session *Ghao, Ghar, Ghaata*, featuring Malini Awasthy and Rekha Bhardwaj, proved to be a real eye-opener, showcasing the debt film composers owe to folk music. From the fiery *Bidi Jalailein* to A.R. Rahman’s adaptation of *Genda Phool*, even the rhythmic “kukukuku” underlying the iconic *Choli Ke Peeche* echoed folksy ingenuity. This music—deeply rooted in community life—is often composed by women as they go about daily tasks, sharing stories, celebrating births, festivals, and seasons. For me, the most beautiful gesture was Malini Awasthy’s special composition based on the legend of Sita, celebrating the birth of a daughter. “There was no song celebrating a girl child—families often hid the gender if they wanted to celebrate the birth,” she shared.

Of course, the festival featured a roster of celebrated authors from Delhi and Mumbai. Shobhaa De held her own while discussing her latest book *The Sensual Self*, lamenting how rushed lifestyles have virtually obliterated the delicacies of romance and courtship. Singapore–Delhi-based author Gautam Hazarika spoke about tracing the lineage of a brave Sikh regiment that fought in WWII from Singapore. “Wherever we launch this book, I try to include the voices of descendants—children and grandchildren of these Sikh soldiers—and it becomes a deeply patriotic and emotional experience,” he shared during an intimate conversation at the author’s lounge over dinner.

Beyond these highlights were many treasured insights, evenings of soulful musical performances, and on-campus stalls offering handwoven sarees, woollen stoles, brocade pendants, brass jewellery, incense, home accessories, and even paintings.

Kudos to the team behind the experience—founder Samraant Virman, curator and moderator Saumya Kulshreshtha, literary patron Ruskin Bond, Comms Craft’s Avni Singh, among others. The plum-hued sunsets and the notorious Paltan Market added their own flavours to the Dehradun experience. We now look forward to the eighth edition, knowing there will be even more resonant voices and insights to cherish.