Odisha Literary Festival 2026 opens in Bhubaneswar with ‘Resurgence of the Word’, bringing writers, thinkers and artists together for 25 sessions
OdishaPlus Bureau
The 14th edition of the Odisha Literary Festival (OLF), eastern India’s flagship literary event organised by The New Indian Express, opened here with a vibrant mix of literature, arts, music and ideas.
Veteran politician, scholar and former Governor of Bihar and Kerala Arif Mohammad Khan inaugurated the two-day festival at Hotel Mayfair Convention in the presence of TNIE Editorial Director Prabhu Chawla, TNIE Group CEO Lakshmi Menon and Odisha Resident Editor Siba Mohanty.
Held on the theme ‘Resurgence of the Word’, the festival features 25 sessions and more than 40 speakers, bringing together writers, academics, journalists, artists, diplomats and public figures for conversations on contemporary society, history, culture and literature.
Khan opened the festival with a conversation with Chawla on ‘Text and Context: Why Reading Matters’, followed by former Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi, who discussed India’s democratic journey in ‘India and I: Evidence of a Democracy in Action’.
Nature, cinema and diplomacy featured prominently in subsequent sessions. Author Neha Sinha explored the relationship between humans and nature, while writer Sutapa Sikdar revisited the life and legacy of actor-filmmaker Irrfan Khan. Veteran diplomat and author Navtej Sarna examined the intersection of literature and diplomacy.
Kashmir’s contested history and present were discussed by ICHR chairperson Prof Raghuvendra Tanwar and JNU professor Amitabh Mattoo. Science writers Anand Ranganathan and Sheetal Ranganathan turned the spotlight on forgotten figures in Indian science.
The festival also examined ideological divisions in academia, with author Ratan Sharda and Makarand R Paranjape debating ‘Ideology in Academics: Left, Right, Who is Right?’
A special session paid tribute to Odia writer JP Das, featuring Prof Jatindra Kumar Nayak, Dr Sangram Jena and Dr Animesh Mohapatra.
The second day will feature discussions on growing up online, the future of Odia publishing, food and identity, hidden histories, women’s anger, leadership and morality.
Popular author Amish Tripathi will conclude the festival with a session on ‘Dharma in Daily Life: The Morality Question’.
Three books were released on the opening day, while retired IAS officer Bibhu Acharya’s poetry collection Poems Across Times: One Family, Three Voices will be released on the concluding day.