New Delhi, May 8 : The Shillong Literary Festival 2026 kicked off its national run Friday with a high-profile New Delhi Prelude at Bikaner House, drawing writers, filmmakers, journalists and policymakers to set the stage for the main event in Shillong from November 12-14.
Organised by the Meghalaya Tourism Department, the two-day prelude aims to project the state’s literary and cultural identity and boost culture-led tourism. “We started off small. Now we are seeing it grow. It has become a calendar event,” Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma said. “We hope that in the years to come, it will become a much-much bigger event, not just nationally, but even globally.”
In a keynote conversation with journalist Shekhar Gupta, Sangma linked the festival to a wider strategy of year-round events beyond the Cherry Blossom Festival. Gupta called the Shillong setting, weather, and audience “unmatched” among literary festivals.
Tourism Commissioner Dr. Vijay Kumar D. said the festival celebrates Meghalaya and Northeast stories, cinema, music and identity. He recalled Vikram Seth’s 2024 description of Shillong in November as the “Kyoto of the West” as cherry blossoms turn the city pink.
Filmmakers Dominic Sangma and Pradip Kurbah, in talks with journalist Suparna Sharma, hailed ‘Hello Meghalaya’ as a “saving grace” OTT platform for independent regional cinema amid access challenges.
The opening night closed with Naseeruddin Shah reading from Vikram Seth’s _Beastly Tales from Here and There_, weaving in James Thurber’s fables to contrast nature and human greed. Earlier, Khasi and Garo classics were spotlighted by Prof. Streamlet Dkhar and Dr. Crystal Cornelious D. Marak, who read from Soso Tham and D.S. Nengminza.
Day two will feature sessions on Northeast literature, ecology, food, and translation with Shobhaa De, Priyadarshini Raje Scindia, Sanjoy Hazarika, Namita Gokhale, and Patricia Mukhim. Artists from the Chief Minister’s Meghalaya Grassroots Music Program wrapped the evening with performances.
