Literary festivals are a very big deal in India, if Vikram Seth is to be believed. Seth made an impromptu appearance at the Mumbai literary festival last week. “The whole thing was pretty chancy. I was supposed to be in England for the launch of The Rivered Earth yesterday. I was in Mumbai for the first exhibition of my sister’s works. Anil Dharker (the festival director) plucked me off the air and got me on the cheap,” he told the First Post.
If Seth really delayed his return to England in favour giving a recital in the Tata Hotel, then it reveals something about his professional and personal priorities. Seth tells Ed Smith, in an interview with today’s Times (£), that he feels most at home “in India”. It’s an unsurprising answer in one regard, given that he was born in Calcutta and has lived in India at various periods.
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