The International Event Corner at the New Delhi World Book Fair 2026 has emerged as an ongoing space for global literary engagement, bringing together writers, poets, teachers, playwrights, translators and cultural practitioners from Europe, Central Asia, West Asia, Latin America, South Asia and the United States. Through a series of talks, readings, book launches and performances, the platform has put forward literature as a vibrant medium for cultural exchange, historical reflection and contemporary debate, strengthening the fair’s role as a meeting point of international ideas and creative traditions.
A recurring theme across many of the sessions was the relationship between literature and lived experience, particularly in contexts shaped by nature, memory and displacement. Russian writer and forester Ilya Kochergin considered writing as a form of dialogue with the natural world, drawing from his book Emergency Exit, which describes his relationship with an old horse. His thinking established literature as a place where human and non-human life intersect, and where language must evolve to remain accessible to contemporary readers.
The conversation emphasized the need for literary forms that respond to modern alienation while maintaining an ethical awareness around coexistence and care. The role of adaptation and cultural translation was equally prominent. The launch of Chhota Rajkumar, an Indian-language adaptation of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince, shows how classic texts continue to travel across cultures through thoughtful reimaginings. Published by Pratham Books and presented by the French Institute in India, the adaptation by Anoushka Ravi Shankar and illustrations by Priya Kurian demonstrated how visual language, narrative compression and cultural context can collectively renew a globally recognized work for young Indian readers. The discussion highlighted translation not only as a form of linguistic transfer, but also as a form of cultural interpretation that balances fidelity with relevance.
Poetry and multilingual expression formed another strong stream throughout the international events. The sessions, involving Spanish, Indian and Central Asian voices, examined shared modernist traditions and the enduring resonance of poetic form. A discussion on the ‘Generation of 27’ based on the work of Federico GarcÃa Lorca with Indian poet Jibanananda Das explored the spread of literary influence across linguistic and national boundaries. Translation emerged as a central concern, particularly in how poetry retained emotional and cultural depth in different languages. Poetry readings in Spanish, Basque, Catalan, Asturian, Bengali and Hindi underlined linguistic pluralism as a necessary feature of contemporary literary exchange rather than an obstacle. Children’s literature and pedagogy addressed through an international perspective, with an emphasis on accessibility and emotional sensitivity. Israeli teacher and writer Iris Argaman called for transforming larger historical narratives into intimate, readable forms for children, arguing that literature for young readers should engage with the difficult past without being preachy.
His ideas highlight reading as an experience based on curiosity and imagination rather than evaluation, affirming storytelling as a creative cultural practice across societies. Questions of memory, identity and belonging resonated strongly in many international conversations. Kazakhstani writers and scholars engaged the audience in a discussion of how individual and collective memory shapes national narratives, especially in post-colonial and post-Soviet contexts. Literature was presented as a means of negotiating continuity and change, allowing societies to reflect on their history while addressing contemporary cultural realities. These discussions revealed shared concerns in a variety of areas, including the transmission of memory, the negotiation of identity, and the role of youth culture in shaping future literary directions.
Theater and performance added further dimensions to the International Events Corner. Russian playwright Yaroslava Pulinovich reflected contemporary theater as a mirror of everyday emotional realities, drawing attention to themes of vulnerability, youth, and resilience. His ideas established drama as a space where reality and fantasy co-exist, providing audiences with a means to confront social and personal questions. Similarly, the cultural exchange associated with Gulf theater traditions highlights how as dramatic forms travel across regions, Indian narratives find resonance in Gulf cultural contexts through shared values ​​and historical interactions. Interdisciplinary approaches to literature were also evident.
A session combining performance, psychology and reflection explored themes of gratitude, inner strength and femininity through sound and rhythm, showing how literary spaces at the fair extend beyond the written word to include embodied and experiential forms of expression. Such engagements reinforced the idea that literature remains connected to broader cultural practices and modes of meaning-making. The ethics of technology emerged as an important contemporary concern in literary production. An international panel on the limits and implications of AI-powered translation examined the tension between technical efficiency and human creativity. While acknowledging the growing role of digital tools, speakers cautioned against the erosion of interpretive nuance and cultural sensitivity in literary translation. The discussion emphasized that translation is an act of creative labor that requires contextual understanding, and that technical intervention should be guided by ethical consideration rather than mere convenience.
Book launches and poetry readings from Nepal and other regions further enriched the international program by bringing into collective reflection the themes of migration, displacement, labor and memory. These sessions highlighted literature’s ability to hold together multiple narratives, allowing personal experience and broader social realities to intertwine through poetry and prose. A particularly reflective engagement with memory and existence was introduced through contemporary Israeli literature, where motherhood, grief and remembrance were discussed as central narrative forces. Literature was presented as a means of maintaining hope and continuity after historical trauma, affirming writing as both personal testimony and collective heritage.
In another session, the deep literary and intellectual ties between India and Iran were explored. Persian was highlighted as a living civilization that historically linked the two countries, serving not only as a literary language but also as a medium of administration, science, and intellectual exchange throughout the subcontinent. Noting that Indian studies remains incomplete without reference to Iranian culture, and that Indo-Iranian relations were forged through books rather than political or economic interests, the translation of the Panchatantra into Persian as Kalila wa Dimna in 517 CE was cited as a watershed moment in this enduring intellectual relationship.
Overall, the international participation at the International Events Corner reflects how the New Delhi World Book Fair 2026 has established literature as a shared global language. By bringing together voices from diverse cultural, linguistic and historical contexts, the platform has facilitated sustained dialogue on topics beyond borders, including nature and coexistence, translation and ethics, memory and identity, and the emerging responsibilities of writers in a changing world. The International Event Corner thus continues to strengthen the fair’s role not only as a venue for books, but also as a platform for cultural understanding and international literary exchange.
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