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{{Short description|Annual literary event organized in Uttar Pradesh, India}}
The [[Kosala (Mahajanapada)|Koshala]] Literature Festival is an annual literary event held in [[Lucknow]], [[Uttar Pradesh]]. The event is organised by the Perspective Cultural Society since 2022, and features sessions on literature, music, visual arts, regional history and contemporary social issues. So far, the festival has hosted authors, thinkers, historians, poets, artists and commentators.

== History & Timeline ==

'''Edition 1'''

Venue – Sangeet Natak Akademi

The first edition of the festival<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kaushik |first=Shrimansi |date=2024-01-02 |title=Enchanting evening at Chowmahalla |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/hyderabad/2024/Jan/02/enchanting-evening-at-chowmahalla-2646885.html |access-date=2025-08-19 |website=The New Indian Express |language=en}}</ref> was a three-day-long event, held at the Sangeet Natak Akademi. The event kicked-off on the 4th of November 2024 and concluded on 6 November 2024.

'''Edition 2'''

Venue - [[La Martinière College, Lucknow|La Martinière College]]

The second edition of the event was held in 2024, after a gap one year, at the La Martinière College<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ghosh |first=Aakash |date=12 February 2024 |title=Mughal-e-Azam's Etawah connection |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/lucknow-news/mughaleazams-etawah-connection-101707679091153.html |work=Hindustan Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Deb |first=Sreya |date=12 February 2024 |title=Koshala Literature Festival: Duo authors chapter of cultural rejuvenation in Lucknow's journey |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/lucknow-news/koshala-literature-festival-duo-authors-chapter-of-cultural-rejuvenation-in-lucknow-s-journey-101707658381240.html |work=Hindustan Times}}</ref> in Lucknow. It was again a three-day-long event, spanning from then 9 February to the 11th February 2024.<ref>{{Cite news |last= |first= |date=7 February 2024 |title=Koshala Literature Festival to return with cultural extravaganza |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/others/koshala-literature-festival-to-return-with-cultural-extravaganza-101707241332349.html |work=Hindustan Times}}</ref>

'''Edition 3'''

Venue - Sangeet Natak Akademi

In its third edition, the event returned to its original venue, the Sangeet Natak Akademi.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2024-11-23 |title=Patrons dress up like 'literary giants', present iconic work as they would have |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/literary-giants-come-to-life-koshala-literature-fest-celebrates-iconic-poets-and-their-work/articleshow/115576549.cms |access-date=2025-07-30 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2024-11-23 |title='Pyaasa' made Sahir a poster boy of lyricism' |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/sahir-ludhianvi-the-lyricist-behind-bollywoods-golden-era-and-pyaasa/articleshow/115576503.cms |access-date=2025-07-30 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref> The event was held between 22 November 2024 and 24 November 2024. The third edition was themed “Sanskriti: India’s Cultural Heritage”.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2024-11-20 |title=Koshala lit fest to blend in music, art and culture |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/koshala-literature-festival-2024-a-celebration-of-music-art-and-culture/articleshow/115462898.cms |access-date= |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref>

'''Edition 4'''

Venue - UP Darshan Park<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Koshala Literature Festival 2025 Returns to Lucknow: Four Days of Words, Music, Culture & the Citys New UNESCO Honour |url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/business/koshala-literature-festival-2025-returns-to-lucknow-four-days-of-words-music-culture-the-citys-new-unesco-honour/ |access-date=2025-12-18 |website=The Tribune |language=en}}</ref>

The fourth edition of the event was held at the UP Darshan Park. It was a four-day-long event. Spanning from 27th November to 30th November 2025<ref name=":3" />, the fourth edition was themed “Celebrating Diversity.”

== Featured guests ==

=== Season 1 ===
[[Devdutt Pattanaik]],<ref>{{Cite news |date=2022-11-07 |title=Lit Fest: Devdutt Pattanaik deciphers Hindu mythology |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/lit-fest-devdutt-pattanaik-deciphers-hindu-mythology/articleshow/95346072.cms |access-date=2025-07-30 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref> [[Ashwin Sanghi]], [[Anand Neelakantan]], [[Manish Tewari]], [[Tigmanshu Dhulia]],<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |date=2024-02-07 |title=Block this weekend for edition 2 of Koshala Litfest |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/block-this-weekend-for-edition-2-of-koshala-litfest/articleshow/107475671.cms? |access-date=2025-07-30 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2022-11-05 |title=Sitapur's Wajahat Mirza work inspired Hindi film writing, including Salim-Javed screenwriters |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/sitapurs-wajahat-mirza-work-inspired-hindi-film-writing-including-salim-javed-screenwriters/articleshow/95326205.cms |access-date=2025-07-30 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref> [[Muzaffar Ali]], [[Shobhaa De]], [[Vidya Shah]], [[Pushpesh Pant]], [[Malini Awasthi]], [[Vikram Sampath]], [[Saeed Naqvi]], [[Sagarika Ghose|Sagarika Ghosh]], Yatindra Mishra, etc.

=== Season 2 ===
Sathya Saran, [[Gurcharan Das]],<ref name=":0" /> John Zubrzycki, [[Ali Khan Mahmudabad|Ali Mahmudabad]],<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |date=2024-02-06 |title=Koshala Literature Festival to return with cultural extravaganza |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/others/koshala-literature-festival-to-return-with-cultural-extravaganza-101707241332349.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240213175809/https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/others/koshala-literature-festival-to-return-with-cultural-extravaganza-101707241332349.html |archive-date=2024-02-13 |access-date=2025-07-30 |work=Hindustan Times |language=en-us}}</ref> Sharad Bindal, Himanshu Bajpai, Saurabh Dwivedi,<ref name=":1" /> Pushpesh Pant,<ref>{{Cite news |date=2024-02-12 |title=Soul-stirring stories found in abundance in Lucknow lanes |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/soul-stirring-stories-in-lucknow-lanes-reflections-on-inclusivity-and-liberalism/articleshow/107613475.cms |access-date=2025-07-30 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref> [[Taslima Nasrin|Tasleema Nasreen]], [[Pankaj Bhadouria]], Azhar Iqbal, Ustad Ghulam Siraj Niazi,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rizvi |first=S Farah |title=From raga, taan to poetry and ghazals |url=https://www.pressreader.com/india/hindustan-times-lucknow/20240212/282278145241529 |access-date=2025-07-30 |via=PressReader}}</ref> etc.

=== Season 3 ===
[[Ira Mukhoty]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ghosh |first=Aakash |date=22 November 2024 |title=Koshala literature fest in Lko: 'Women's contribution in history limited to few chapters' |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/lucknow-news/koshala-literature-fest-in-lko-women-s-contribution-in-history-limited-to-few-chapters-101732288605607.html |work=Hindustan Times}}</ref> Eric Chopra, [[TCA Raghavan]], [[Nilotpal Mrinal]], [[Ila Arun]],<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=S Farah |first=Rizvi |date=21 November 2024 |title=Vikas Swarup, Anubhav Sinha and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt to feature at Koshala Lit Fest in Lucknow |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/vikas-swarup-anubhav-sinha-and-vishwa-mohan-bhatt-to-feature-at-koshala-lit-fest-in-lucknow-101732176041789.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com |work=Hindustan Times}}</ref> [[Saurabh Kirpal]], [[Malavika Rajkotia]], [[Shenaz Treasury]],<ref name=":2" /> [[Saurav Jha]], [[Anubhav Sinha]], Harshita Gupta, [[Vishwa Mohan Bhatt]], [[Vikas Swarup]],<ref name=":2" /> Devapriya Roy, Prayaag Akbar, Shubhra Gupta, Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati, Duvvuri Subba Rao, [[Purushottam Agrawal|Purushottam Agarwal]],<ref name=":2" /> [[Radha Kumar]], etc.

=== Season 4 ===
[[Rajit Kapur]], Jyotsna Mohan, Vaibhav Vishal, [[Anil Rastogi]], [[Ghazala Wahab]], Meera Ali, Chugge Khan, [[Akshat Gupta]], Sharad Bindal, [[Wasim Barelvi]], [[Amar Chitra Katha|Reena Puri]], etc.

==References==
{{Reflist}}
[[Category:Annual events in India]]
[[Category:Poetry festivals in India]]
[[Category:Book fairs in India]]
[[Category:Literary festivals in India]]
[[Category:Culture of Lucknow]]
[[Category:Literature of Uttar Pradesh]]
[[Category:Festivals established in 2022]]
[[Category:Uttar Pradesh-related lists]]
[[Category:Lucknow-related lists]]

Koshala Literature Festival - Revision history

Maleeha: new info!