The first edition of the Nalanda Literature Festival is scheduled to take place from December 21 to 25, 2025, in Rajgir, Bihar. Organized by Jashn-e-Adab, the Centre for Indian Classical Dances, the Shining Muskan Foundation, and Dhanu Bihar in collaboration with Nalanda University, the event will highlight India’s traditions of knowledge, culture, and heritage.
Set near the ancient Nalanda Mahavihara, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the festival aims to encourage engagement with India’s civilizational heritage, linguistic diversity, and literary traditions. According to the organizers, the programme will include discussions, workshops, and performances designed to connect historical ideas with contemporary creative expression.
The organizing committee includes Dr. Sonal Mansingh, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Sachidanand Joshi, D. Aaliya, Harshvardhan Neotia, Dr. Pankaj KP Shreyaskar, Ganga Kumar, Sanjay Kumar, Vinod Anupam, Vinay Kumar, Rajiv Ranjan Dwivedi, Pankaj Dubey, Aradhana Pradhan, F. Azzam, and Abhay Kumar.
The festival’s schedule will feature literary panels, author interactions, cultural presentations, and workshops. A special segment will focus on the Northeast, highlighting tribal languages and regional linguistic traditions. Other sessions will address oral literature, translations, representation of women in Indian literature, diaspora writing, and marginalized voices.
Among the announced events are interactive conversations featuring Dr. Shashi Tharoor with Prof. Sachin Chaturvedi, Adoor Gopalakrishnan with Naveen Chaudhury, and Anupam Kher with Dr. Sachchidanand Joshi. Additional participants include Akhilendra Mishra, Ravishankar Upadhyay, Arup Kumar Dutta, Shahu Patole, Koral Dasgupta, and Amitabh Kant. Daily yoga and meditation sessions by the Bihar School of Yoga and evening cultural performances are also planned.
Festival director Ganga Kumar said the event seeks to create an experience that connects audiences with India’s civilizational narrative. Curator Pankaj Dubey noted that holding the festival in Nalanda offers an opportunity to revisit the region’s literary and historical legacy.
