Jaipur Literature Festival 2020: The sessions we’re most looking forward to

Jaipur Literature Festival 2020: The sessions we’re most looking forward to

22 January 2020

Priyanka Mogul, Literature Programme Manager

Asia House is delighted to be attending Jaipur Literature Festival 2020 (23-27 January) – famously dubbed the “greatest literary show on Earth”.

With more than 200 sessions and more than 500 speakers spanning across five days, planning your visit – among 400,000+ other attendees – isn’t an easy task. After a lot of deliberation and scrutiny of the programme, we’ve come up with a list of some of the sessions that we’re most looking forward to (while simultaneously wishing we could be in two – or more – sessions at once).

Check out the full programme here and tweet us at @asiahousearts to let us know which sessions you’re most looking forward to!

 

 

23 January

 

10.00 – 11.00  INAUGURAL SESSION: EACH OTHER’S STORIES

Chief Guest: Hon.Chief Minister Shri.Ashok Gehlot

Opening Address: Namita Gokhale, William Dalrymple and Sanjoy K. Roy

Keynote Address: Marcus du Sautoy and Shubha Mudgal

 

11.15 – 12.15  MYTHOLOGY FOR THE MILLENNIAL

Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan and Anand Neelakantan in conversation with Malashri Lal, introduced by Jaishree Periwal

Even as books around mythological themes consistently top the bestseller charts, references to ancient epics abound in every aspect of public and private life, from advertising to politics. Well-known writers bridge the generational gap to search how and why millennials reinterpret the vast body of Indian myth to understand and make sense of their own times and situations. 

 

12.30 – 13.30 THERE’S GUNPOWDER IN THE AIR

Manoranjan Byapari in conversation with Anu Singh Choudury

‘There’s Gunpowder in the Air’ is set in the Naxalbari movement of the early 70s and is a scathing exploration of how human idealism is systematically decimated, and was on the shortlist for both the JCB Prize for Literature and the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature. Manoranjan Byapari  learnt how to read and write while in jail at the age of 24 and rose to fame over the past two years as one of the most celebrated writers of Dalit literature in Bengali today.

 

14.30 – 15.30  ADÈLE

Leïla Slimani in conversation with Avni Doshi

Leïla Slimani is the first Moroccan woman to win France’s most prestigious literary prize, the Prix Goncourt, which she won for Lullaby. A journalist and frequent commentator on women’s and human rights, she is French president Emmanuel Macron’s personal representative for the promotion of the French language and culture.

 

15.45 – 16.45  THE HIDDEN HISTORY OF BURMA

Thant Myint-U in conversation with Suhasini Haidar

In his perceptive and enlightening new work ‘The Hidden History of Burma: Race, Capitalism, and the Crisis of Democracy in the 21st Century’, historian Thant Myint-U raises concerns about the status of democracy and questions the political assumptions of his country. 

 

17.15 – 18.15  THE NEW SILK ROADS: THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF THE WORLD

Peter Frankopan introduced by Bruno Maçães

Peter Frankopan’s ‘Silk Roads’, a major reassessment of world history, has sold over a million copies worldwide. Its sequel, ‘The New Silk Roads’, takes a fresh look at the relationships being formed along the length and breadth of the ancient trade routes today. The world is changing dramatically and in an age of Brexit and Trump, the themes of isolation and fragmentation permeating the western world stand in sharp contrast to events along the Silk Roads, where ties are being strengthened and mutual cooperation established.

 

 

24 January

 

10.00 – 11.00  SHE MERCHANTS BUCCANEERS AND GENTLEWOMEN: BRITISH WOMEN IN INDIA

Katie Hickman in conversation with Bee Rowlatt

In this landmark session, celebrated chronicler Katie Hickman, in conversation with Bee Rowlatt uncovers stories, until now hidden from history. Through diaries, letters and memoirs, many still in manuscript form, this exciting book reveals the extraordinary life and times of hundreds of women who made their way across the sea and changed history.

 

11.15 – 12.15  CELESTIAL BODIES

Jokha Alharthi and Zikrur Rahman in conversation with Mohamed Zarrouk

Omani writer Jokha Alharthi was awarded the Man Booker International Prize for the year 2019 for her magnificent novel Celestial Bodies.  She is the first Arabic-language winner of the prize. Originally entitled “Sayyidat al-Qamr” (“Ladies of the Moon”), this inventive, multigenerational tale is set in the fictional desert village of al-Awafi.  In conversation with Dr. Mohamed Zarrouk and Prof. Zikrur Rahman, she speaks of her novel’s exploration – through the prism of one family’s losses and loves – of Oman’s coming-of-age.

 

12.30 – 13.30  WINNERS TAKE ALL: THE ELITE CHARADE OF CHANGING THE WORLD

Anand Giridharadas in conversation with Åsne Seierstad

Writer and TIME editor-at-large Anand Giridharadas takes on the privileged classes in his scorching new book, the bestselling Winners Take All. It investigates the global elite’s efforts to ‘change the world’ except in ways that threaten the social order and their position atop it. This searing critique of modern plutocrats who seek to do more good but never less harm is described as a call to action for elites and everyday citizens alike. A session that offers transformative perspectives to complex societal problems. In conversation with Åsne Seierstad.

 

13.40 – 14.20  THE BLACK DWARVES OF THE GOOD LITTLE BAY

by Varun Thomas Mathew in conversation with Devapriya Roy, launch by Mahua Moitra

 

14.30 – 15.30  ASIA RISING

Bruno Maçães, Shivshankar Menon and Deepak Nayyar in conversation with Suhasini Haidar

With Asia at the centre of international geopolitics, an incisive session examines the players and positions amidst shifting perspectives and situations. Bruno Maçães’ recent books include ‘The Dawn of Eurasia: On the Trail of a New World Order’, an account of the coming integration of Europe and Asia. Shivshankar Menon’s latest book, ‘Past Present: India in Asian Geopolitics’, takes a long deep look at the Asian story. Deepak Nayyar is author of ‘Resurgent Asia’, which highlights development and economic transformation over the past 50 years. Together, in conversation with journalist Suhasini Haidar, they discuss and dissect Asia’s place in the new world order.

 

15.45 – 16.45  CLIENT EARTH

Martin Goodman, Jairam Ramesh and David Wallace-Wells in conversation with Jeffrey Gettleman

Every bit as radical the name suggests, ClientEarth continues to be a necessary intervention in times of rampant ecological devastation. Comprising of a bastion of passionate and purposeful lawyers, the revolutionary non-profit law organisation has sought to represent the Earth and advocate for its interests.

 

17.15 – 18.15  BIG TECH, SURVEILLANCE CAPITALISM, DATA HARVESTING AND THE CYBER FUTURE

 

 

25 January

 

10.00 – 11.00  KALI’S DAUGHTER: COMING OUT AS A DALIT

Yashica Dutt and Raghav Chandra in conversation with Pragya Tiwari

A moving and disturbing session that transposes personal memoir and fictional narrative to probe the hurt and injustice of the caste system. 

 

11.15 – 12.15  PARTITION VOICES

Kavita Puri and Sam Dalrymple in conversation with Aanchal Malhotra

 

12.30 – 13.30  THE GIRL FROM ALEPPO: NUJEEN’S ESCAPE FROM WAR TO FREEDOM

Christina Lamb in conversation with Suhasini Haidar

In conversation with Suhasini Haidar, Lamb tells the story of what it is really like to be a refugee, to have grown up in a dictatorship only for your life to be blighted by war, to have left a beloved homeland to become dependent on others. It is the story of our times told through the incredible bravery of one remarkable girl determined to keep smiling.

 

13.40 – 14.20  LOW

Jeet Thayil in conversation with Nandini Nair, launch by David Godwin

Payal Arora and Jaspreet Bindra in conversation with Vindu Goel

Digital anthropologist Payal Arora examines the online lives of millions of people in China, Brazil, India and across the Middle East in her insightful book ‘The Next Billion Users : Digital Life Beyond the West’. Jaspreet Bindra’s recent ‘The Tech Whisperer’ speaks of digital transformations and disruptions, and the technologies that enable this shift. In conversation with Vindu Goel, they discuss different aspects of emergent technologies and how to leverage them in a constantly changing and ever more connected world, with particular reference to the needs and aspirations of the next billion users.

 

15.45 – 16.45  TWO WOMEN WALKING KABUL

Christina Lamb and Taran N. Khan in conversation

War zones are implicitly forbidden spaces for most, which makes two women talking about their experiences in Kabul all the more radical. Acclaimed journalists Christina Lamb and Taran N. Khan share their accounts of exploring a region that has been relegated to a particular kind of lens and reinvent the idea of navigating traditionally conflicted lands.

 

16.45 – 17.15  THE SHAADI STORY: BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE BIG FAT INDIAN WEDDING

by Amita Nigam Sahay in cnversation with Devapriya Roy, launch by Amitabh Kant

What makes the Big Fat Indian Wedding so central to our lives? In ‘The Shaadi Story’, social entrepreneur Amita Nigam Sahaya takes a fascinating look at the history, religious traditions, societal attitudes, industry and modern adaptations of the North Indian Hindu wedding and beyond.

 

17.15 – 18.15  WHERE DOES FICTION COME FROM?

Elizabeth Gilbert, Leïla Slimani, Avni Doshi, John Lanchester and Howard Jacobson in conversation with Damian Barr

Where does fiction come from? What is the process of its creation? How do you make up characters and situations that are believable- and why should the reader care? Five of the world’s most acclaimed novelists —Elizabeth Gilbert, Leïla Slimani, Avni Doshi, John Lancaster and Howard Jacobson— share their insights on the art of the novel with Damian Barr.

 

 

26 January

 

10.00 – 11.00  UNINHABITABLE EARTH

David Wallace-Wells, John Lanchester, Marcus Moench and Navroz K. Dubash in conversation with Prem Jha

An urgent session that brings together a panel of environmental researchers and activists, and analyses measures to mitigate the greatest challenge humanity faces today.

 

11.15 – 12.15  THE ANARCHY

William Dalrymple introduced by Manu S. Pillai

‘The Anarchy’ tells the remarkable story of how one of the world’s most magnificent empires disintegrated and came to be replaced by a dangerously unregulated private company, based thousands of miles overseas in one small office, five windows wide, and answerable only to its distant shareholders. In his most ambitious and riveting book to date, William Dalrymple unfolds a timely cautionary tale of the first global corporate power.

 

12.30 – 13.30  POOR ECONOMICS: FIGHTING GLOBAL POVERTY

Abhijit V. Banerjee in conversation with Sreenivasan Jain

In conversation with journalist Sreenivasan Jain, Abhijit V. Banerjee explains the need to understand and measure what happens in the real world to alleviate poverty and the necessity of making the poor and their decision-making central to the process. An inspirational session of insights and learnings vital to understanding our world.

 

13.40 – 14.20  WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS

Conversation with 4 Young Changemakers (featured in the book) and Authors Rashmi Bansal and Devendra Tak, launch by Diya Kumari

‘We Are the Champions’ is the story of 15 boys and girls from across India who, often against daunting odds, have struggled for improving the lives of underprivileged children, and to bring improvement in society. The children bring to light the problems and solutions linked to capital punishment, casteism, child labour, child marriage, dowry, drugs, education, environment degradation, gender discrimination, health, hygiene, inequity, trafficking and water and sanitation.

 

14.30 – 15.30  AI AND CREATIVITY

Marcus du Sautoy in conversation with Sanjoy K. Roy

As Artificial Intelligence takes over human narratives, Marcus du Sautoy questions the shape of our future. In his book ‘The Creativity Code: How AI is Learning to Write, Paint and Think’, he expounds on how algorithms work, the nature of creativity and how engineers are tracking our emotional responses to art. In a riveting session, du Sautoy, the Simonyi Professor for Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University, discusses intuition, the creative process and its correlation with mathematics.

 

15.45 – 16.45  NATIONALISM, POPULISM AND THE FATE OF THE WORLD

Simon Schama introduced by Frank Dikötter

We are on the precipice of a socio-political reckoning as regimes become more nationalistic and protests erupt in all corners of the world, and populist understanding of democracy and institutions invite close scrutiny. Simon Schama wrestles  with the fate of the world as it presents itself today by looking back at the roots and development of nationalism, and more tellingly, revisiting the first modern postwar orchestration of militant tribalism over 30 years ago in Yugoslavia by Slobodan Milosevic and his allies.

 

 

27 January

 

10.00 – 11.00  CLIMATE EMERGENCY

Dia Mirza, Renata Lok-Dessallien, Sonam Wangchuk, Apoorva Oza, Namita Waikar and Shubhangi Swarup in conversation with Samir Saran

Saving our planet is not just the subject of passionate political debate. The message is clear: everyone is responsible for creating a more environmentally sustainable world – governments, private sector, think tanks, academic institutions, etc. And the arts and cultural sector are no exception. Cultural organisations are in a unique position to challenge, inform and engage audiences in conversations about the environment.

 

11.15 – 12.15  INDLIT: MANY LANGUAGES, ONE LITERATURE

KR Meera, Shubhangi Swarup and Aruni Kashyap in conversation with Arunava Sinha

The landscape of Indian literature is multilingual and multivocal with 22 official languages and thousands of mother tongues and dialects. A session that interrogates and celebrates the unity in this diversity with three celebrated writers reading from their works, in Malayalam, Assamese and English, as they discuss the literary and linguistic context of their inspirations.

 

12.30 – 13.30  THE FRONTLINE CLUB

Christina Lamb, Anand Gopal, Dexter Filkins and Lindsey Hilsum in conversation with Rajini Vaidyanathan

Hollywood has long glamourised the war journalist as a hard drinking chancer, taking extreme risks to get the big Pulitzer-winning front page spread. Here, celebrated foreign correspondents- Christina Lamb, Anand Gopal, Dexter Filkins and Lindsey Hilsum lift the lid on one of the glamorous and dangerous jobs in journalism, parsing myth from reality in conversation with the BBC’s South Asia correspondent, Rajini Vaidyanathan.

 

13.40 – 14.20  SECRETS OF AMBER

by Rashmi Dickinson, in conversation about responsible and sustainable tourism with Hon. Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh Bharatpur and Edward Dickinson

Secrets of Amber contains 12 beautifully illustrated walks around the ancient walled town of Amber, to encourage responsible & sustainable tourism. Learning from the experience of the World Heritage Site Amber Fort, the conversation will focus on the need for responsible & sustainable tourism, how this can be developed in practice and  and the potential benefits for host communities & visitors. 

 

15.45 – 16.45  HOW TO BE A DICTATOR: THE CULT OF PERSONALITY IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

Frank Dikötter in conversation with Rajini Vaidyanathan

In ‘How to Be a Dictator’, Frank Dikötter examines the cults and propaganda surrounding 20th century dictators, from Hitler and Stalin to Mao Zedong and Kim Il Sung. Their dictatorships, in turn, have influenced leaders in the 21st century, including Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping and Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Using a breadth of archival research and his characteristic in-depth analysis, Dikötter, speaking to journalist Rajini Vaidyanathan, offers a stunning portrait of dictatorship, a guide to the cult of personality and a map for exposing the lies dictators tell to build and maintain their regimes.

 

17.15 – 18.15  DEBATE: SOCIAL MEDIA HAS DIVIDED SOCIETY

John Lanchester, Nilanjana S. Roy, Rana Ayyub, Marcus du Sautoy, Faye D’Souza and Siddharth Vardarajan, moderated by Sonia Singh

 

 

Find out more about JLF 2020 at www.jaipurliteraturefestival.org and stay tuned to receive our updates from the ground.