Book village celebrates debut weekend
Between the hill stations of Panchgani and Mahabaleshwar, India’s first book village just celebrated its first weekend. Pustakache Gaon is inspired by Britain’s Hay-onwye, a book-themed Welsh town known for its quaint bookstores and its literature festival.
Families drove into Bhilar from far and wide over the weekend, set for a day of browsing.
“We just wanted to show our support for this fantastic concept by the government of Maharashtra,” said Shanta Purandare, a school teacher. “A village encouraging reading, that too in Marathi — that is something we’d never miss. The kids visited the children’s literature section and didn’t want to leave.”
The Purandares came from Mumbai, driving for six hours in a convoy of three cars — a family of 10, including two toddlers
Essentially, 25 spaces have been converted into free public libraries in this village.
Some are houses that have put a few bookcases and scattered tables and chairs, umbrellas and beanbags in their balconies and courtyards. Elsewhere, schools and temples have done the same.
There are over 15,000 titles across 25 genres, including history travel sport and chil dren’s literature, currently all in Marathi.
“We’re planning to include other languages soon,” says Dr Jagatanand Bhatkar, assistant secretary of the Marathi Vishwakosh Centre associated with the project. “For those who can’t read, there are audio books available.”
When you’re done reading, you can take in the straw berry fields and litchi plantations over a glass of strawberry juice.
“They are not just readers who walk in, they are also our guests,” says Ganpatram Parathe, who has created a reading space in his courtyard. “Besides, we want them to come again and tell others too.”
“Book shops are shutting down in cities and to see a village embracing this concept is very moving,” says corporate communications manager Ganesh Mane, who drove here from Pune, two hours away.
“I’d been wanting to visit ever since I first read about the book village opening on Thursday,” says lawyer Rhea Kadam, 25, from Mumbai, who cancelled lunch plans with relatives so she could come here with her 23-yearold brother. “My brother’s been taking photos all day, to inspire others in Mumbai to come too. There are books here that I have never seen or heard of anywhere else ”