The curtain rose on Raipur Literature Festival 2026 in spectacular fashion, beginning with homage to Vinod Kumar Shukla amid a constellation of leaders at his namesake mandap. Rajya Sabha’s Harivansh as chief guest, CM Vishnu Dev Sai presiding, and guests Arun Sao, Dr. Kumud Sharma, Manoj Joshi set a high bar.
Unveilings spotlighted Chhattisgarh’s silver jubilee keepsake, literary coffee table splendor, Nandakumar’s ‘National Selfhood in Science,’ Joshi’s ‘Red Walls, White Lies,’ and Prasad’s provocative title—priming pumps for deep dives.
Harivansh’s tribute to Shukla celebrated entrenched cultural lore, festival flair, Kabir’s regional roots, literature’s revolutionary spark via Gupt, and India’s ascent in key sectors toward developed status.
Sai’s vision framed Chhattisgarh as divine cradle, festival as words’ ocean, hosting 120 scribes. Freedom’s churn yielded nectar through suffering litterateur-soldiers; Chaturvedi’s verses, Sapre’s tale icons. Preservation honors Pandey cohort via dedicated spaces.
Themed venues immortalize Shukla et al.; poetry defies tyranny, Vajpayee inspires. Sao, Sharma amplify state’s gifts, Amrit Kaal selfhood.
Packed talks on zeitgeist issues, youth vanguard—this fest galvanizes literary renaissance.