A new festival celebrating South Asian children’s authors and illustrators will take place in the autumn. SAIL FEST, a one-day event, held at the British Library in September will bring together creatives working in the children’s book market for the first time in the hope of connecting them with the wider literary community made up of publishers, booksellers, and librarians, and each other.
SAIL FEST is the brainchild of a trio of women including bookseller Sanchita Basu De Sarkar, award-winning author Chitra Soundar, and publicity director Sinéad Gosai. The inaugural event will include author talks, panel discussions, and a keynote speech from Perminder Mann, CEO of Bonnier Books and President of the Publishers Association.
SAIL Fest Founder and Children’s Bookseller, Sanchita Basu De Sarkar said: “We’re so excited to be bringing together South Asian talent across the children’s literary world in the UK. We’ve come a long way over recent years, so this will be a real chance to both celebrate the new books coming out whilst creating a platform for an underrepresented group. Our aim is to harness our collective power to help create real change for South Asian creatives and we hope SAIL Fest can unite the community, create more lasting opportunities, and provide a safe space to achieve this.”
Perminder Mann, CEO of Bonnier Books and President of the Publishers Association said: “I’m honoured to be delivering the keynote speech at the inaugural SAIL festival, a groundbreaking event in the UK dedicated to celebrating and uplifting South Asian talent within children’s literature. The creation of a platform to harness, champion, and develop South Asian talent in UK children’s books is long overdue. I believe SAIL FEST will be a pivotal force in driving positive change for all readers and industry professionals. I am hopeful it will make a lasting impact and inspire the next generation of storytellers.”
SAIL FEST takes place on Friday 6 September at the British Library.
