On The Racks

Namita Gokhale
Jaipur Journals | Penguin Random House

The setting is the expansive Diggy Palace—complete with the Writer’s Lounge, Media Terrace and the delectable Diggy chai—where thirteen Jaipur literature festivals (JLF) have been held. But the quirky characters in Jaipur Journals are a mix of real people and those from ­Namita Gokhale’s fertile mind. So, there is Shashi Tharoor, Barkha Dutt, Javed Akhtar, as also Zoya Mankotia, the feminist writer who gets a nasty message from a fan on stage, Raju Srivastava, a thief who is a great admirer of sher-o-shaiyiri, especially Akhtar’s, among a host of other colourful characters, writers, poets and storytellers.

Gokhale, one of the founders of the JLF and author of many books, gets the literature festival’s atmosphere spot on. She has an eye for the quirky, the queer, and breathes life into them. For those who are regulars at the festival, there is a lot to chuckle about the various sessions, the mercurial participants and divas and doyens of literature. For those who have not been to JLF, this book will coax them to book their tickets much in advance for the next edition.