Dan Brown, author of 'Da Vinci Code', Chetan Bhagat, the Indian author of six bestseller books, controversial politician and author Shashi Tharoor, British publisher, John Butto, popular Egyptian movie and stage actor, Adel Emam, academician and quiz master Terry O'Brein, are among the hundreds of authors and speakers lined up for the 33rd edition of Sharjah International Book Fair 2014.
The 11-day book fair from November 5-15 will host many popular authors and their publishers, while celebrity speakers will interact with readers.
About 1,256 publishers from 59 countries will present their literary creations in the book fair.
Dan Brown, one of the best-selling international authors with 200 million copies in print in 52 languages is the Guest of Honour. He will be speaking about his work at a special event at the Expo Centre, Sharjah on Thursday November 6, at 7:30pm. Popular Egyptian movie and stage actor, Adel Emam, will speak to the public also on November 6, 2014.
Brown’s previous work includes 'Digital Fortress', 'Deception Point', 'The Lost Symbol', 'The Da Vinci Code' and 'Angels & Demons', which have been made into films - both starring Tom Hanks. His latest work 'Inferno' is arguably Brown’s most compelling and thought-provoking novel to date.
Signed copies of his books, in both English language and Arabic editions, will be available.
The participation from the Indian publishing industry in the Sharjah International Book Fair will double in 2014, with 100 publishers displaying their creative work, compared to just 55 publishers in 2014.
Organised under the theme, a good book for everyone, Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qassimi, Member of UAE Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah will inaugurate the fair on November 5, 2014.
Announcing details of the Indian participation in the SIBF 2014, Ravi DC, Chief Executive Officer, DC Books, said: “Compared to three or four Indian publishers that took part in the Sharjah International Book Fair earlier, around 100 Indian publishers will be present in the Indian pavilion, which will be inaugurated on November 5, 2014 by the Indian Ambassador to the UAE, TP Seetharam.
“About 30 Indian authors including Chetan Bhagat, Amitav Ghosh, Shiv Khera, Amish Tripathi and others will participate in the intellectual seasons. There is a double fold increase in the number of Indian authors present in the SIBF,” he said, adding that Capexil and National Book Trust of India have increased their support for Indian publishers, participating in the expo.
On November 7, Amish Tripathi, author of Shiva Triology, will speak about the success of his title followed by an evening with authors across India organized by Sahithya Academy involving Dr Aziz Hajini, Alamkode Leela Krishnan, Rajendra Upadhyaya, Prof Vinodh Joshi and Dr K Srinivasan.
“The most prominent Indian guests for the SIBF are Shashi Tharoor, Amitav Ghosh, Shiv Khera, Chetan Bhaghat, Amish Tripathi, Sugathakumar, Malayalam actress Manju Warrier, Chandrahas Chaudhury, Rasmi Bansal, Vinitha Ramchandani, KG Sankara Pillai, MP Veerendrakumar, Madhusoodanan Nair, Kureepuzha Sreekumar, Perumbadavam Sreedharan, A Sethumadhavan, Prabha Varma PP Ramachandran, KR Meera, playback Singer G Venugopal, Laxmidevi and Vindas Elayavoor.
“Around 10 Indian authors from the UAE will launch their books during the fair. These authors are Sadiq Kavil, PP Shashindran, EM Ashraf, KM Abbas, Sasi Kumar, etc, will launch their books and organise book discussions during the fair,” said Mohan Kumar, External Affairs Executive, SIBF 2014.
A 'kavya sandhya' (Poetic evening) will involve the participation of poets like KG Shankara Pillai, Mureepuzha Sreekumar, Madhusudhanan Nair, Prabha Varma and PP Ramachandran.
About 750 events and programmes are planned for the book fair, which is spread out for 11 days to facilitate participation from all walks of life, including the school children, who came in thousands to attend the previous editions of SIBF.
Interactive session is planned with famous Malayalam heroine, Manju Warrier, who has played lead roles in 20 Malayalam movies, and authored a book, 'Sallapam'.
Shashi Tharoor, an elected member of Indian Parliament, author, UN peacekeeper, former Minister, has authored 14 books.
Authors' sessions exclusively for students are organized on all week days. Chef Anil Kumar, Culinary Director, Food Wise and member of the Emirates Culinary Guild, are among other celebrities participating in the literary and interactive sessions.
An inter School challenge quiz, special essay competition and other events and competitions are lined up for school students in the UAE, according to Ravi DC. Shiv Khera author and inspirational speaker will talk on “Winners Don’t do Different Things, they do things differently.” In the meet the author programmes, there will be interactive sessions with KR Meera, author of 'Araachar' (Hang Woman), Amithav Ghosh, on 'Circle of Reason', international launch of Half Girlfriend from Chatham Bhagath, and other events like a 'live' cooking session with Dr L Nair, a famous South Indian chef.
The First Sharjah International Book Fair American Library Association (ALA) with a two day library conference, discount of 20 to 30 per cent than the market price for books, special discounts for school students are among offers during the fair to encourage reading habit.
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