CLF Literati Concludes with Sessions Showcasing Authors, Artistes & IPS Officers

Chandigarh, November 23, 2025: The concluding day of CLF Literati 2025(Chd. LitFest) which was organised by Chandigarh Literary Society(CLS) witnessed some very interesting and pertinent literary sessions. Two book launches during the ‘Book Buzz’ segment was the added attraction for book lovers. The high point of the day and festival came when CLF Literati Book Awards instituted by CLS was held.

Dr Sumita Misra said, “Today is a moment of pride for all of us as now Chandigarh has its very own national level book awards. We plan to announce book awards during CLF Literati every year thereby making the festival a truly holistic national level literary event.”

Dr Misra added, “We have been able to create a lot of buzz in literary circles of not just the region but even nationally by bringing together acclaimed authors,celebrities-turned-authors & poets and the sharpest thinkers, analysts and academics to discuss new books, literary trends and pertinent issues year after year. This has given Chandigarh an image of being a national level literature destination.”

Dr Sumita Misra thanked the speakers and authors for sharing your insights, stories, and wisdom. “All of you enriched our minds and touched our hearts,” she said. She also thanked all the interlocutors, the audience and team members & volunteers of Chandigarh Literary Society.

Meanwhile, the concluding day started with a ‘Creative Writing Workshop’ by Sonika Sethi and Deviyani Singh. The literary exchanges began soon after the workshop with ‘Spiritual Chords: Stories of Change and Choice’ opening the discussions. In this session Shalini Modi who has written book ‘Rasas in Divine Relationships and Immortality: A Boon or a Curse’ and Krishnapad Das Krishna - a spiritual mentor with The Akshaya Patra Foundation engaged in a conversation with Annurani Sharma a bilingual poet, writer, and devotional singer; the session was followed by ‘Roots and Recipes: A Wellness Conversation’ which showcased a discussion between Rujuta Diwekar India’s leading nutritionist and public health advocate with academic and author Urvi Sharma; ‘Bihar Diaries and Ground Zero: Real Heroes, Real Stories’ presented Amit Lodha the IPS officer who’s known for three bestselling works - ‘Bihar Diaries’, ‘Life in the Uniform’, and ‘Police Affairs’. Notably, ‘Bihar Diaries’ was made into a popular OTT series. Amit Lodha was joined by former national hockey player Veena Raman who is the wife of the late IPS officer Vijay Raman, known for eliminating athlete-turned-dacoit Paan Singh Tomar as SP Bhind. His memoir 'Did I Really Do All This?' co-authored by his wife Veena was also discussed. Both engaged in a conversation with IPS officer & author Arsh Verma.

These sessions were followed by the launch of two books – ‘Life, Love and Us’ by Sonia Vashisht Oberoi and ‘Echoes of the Soul’ by Ravee Pandher.

Post the book launches, the sessions restarted with ‘India’s Living Constitution: The Interplay of Law, Rights & Reality in which Dr Ashwini Kumar an eminent lawyer, thinker, author and a veteran parliamentarian was seen in conversation with senior journalist Manraj Grewal; in ‘Telling Tales, Touching Lives’ Shobha Tharoor an award-winning author and Mona Verma - another award-winning author were seen in conversation with Sonika Sethi; ‘Saaz Aur Sama: The Art of Qawwali’ saw Classical Dancer & Creator of Sufi Kathak, Manjari Chaturvedi; founder-director of Rhyvers Publishing Group & Sufi Columnist Affan Yesvi and a sufi musician, popularly known as 'Prince of Qawwali’- Dhruv Sangari - in conversation with poet, translator, and researcher Dr. Vishakha Goyal; ‘Seedha Samvaad’ showcased a discussion between prolific Hindi writer Balram and Vijay Kapoor a renowned poet, storyteller & playwright; ‘From Krishna to Chanakya: Retelling Bharat with a Twist’ presented English fiction author, Ashwin Sanghi in conversation with Aradhika Sharma the author of ‘Sunita Williams: Astronaut Extraordinaire’.

The festival concluded with the CLF Literati Awards Ceremony, in which CLF Literati Awards were presented to Fiction & Non-Fiction categories of both English and Hindi by Dr. Sumita Misra and Team Literati. Three books got the coveted award: ‘The Undying Light: A Personal History of Independent India’ by Gopalkrishna Gandhi (Aleph Book Company) in the English Non –Fiction category; ‘The Ayodhya Alliance: Bharat Collection 8’ by Ashwin Sanghi (HarperCollins Publishers India) in English Fiction and in ‘Shubh Din’ by Balram (Rajkamal Prakashan Pvt. Ltd) in the Hindi section.