Book fair opens to lukewarm response, organisers expect more footfall in coming days

Unlike previous years, this year, the entrance was filled with volunteers making sure that the visitors are following the COVID-19 protocols. The fair features around 800 stalls and 15 lakh titles. 

The stalls of various genres including fiction,non-fiction, spirituality, books in various languages and educational books are open to the public. Nithya Kalyani, an employee at Baskar Book House, whose stall was put up in the fair, says, “We have been part of the Chennai Book Fair for the past 10 years. This year is different from the past years due to the pandemic. In the past, our stall used to be crowded, but this year, even after one or two hours, our sales are not rising.  Our expected sales and the sales we have currently are different. We hope the sales will increase as the fair continues.”

Reicha Singh, a nutritionist by profession is an avid reader when it comes to the books that suit her taste. “I usually can’t stop reading books that suit my sense of thinking. I need to complete that particular book, until then I’m restless,” she explains. Having been to several book fairs in Mumbai and Delhi for over 20 years, Reicha reveals that it is her first time visiting the Chennai Book Fair in her three years of living in the city.

With books becoming digitised these days, it is hard to find certain physical copies of books. Reicha adds, “One can read multiple books at the same time and carrying e-books are a lot easier. While the ill-effects can be centred around the fact that notifications in phones and tablets get you distracted from reading.”

Emphasising the change in reading pattern from buying physical copies of books to subscribing to e-books, Nithya Kalyani sums up, “With just one click of a button, one can select the author and choose books regardless of their genre. Earlier, books were used to read and get information. Several people take photos of the books they want to read. They don’t understand that reading physical copies of books is helpful to the eyes and brains when compared to e-books. ”