In a first, lit fest for the teens by a teen

‘One More Chapter Lit Fest’ is a literary festival ideated by 15-year-old Preesha Ohri and 22-year-old Madhav Mehrotra who wanted to create a platform where teenagers could talk about what they are reading, writing, dreaming, thinking and ideating.

There were voices of passion and reason, sounds of humanity and tolerance, plenty of fun and vibrant interactions and a garrulous energy that reverberated through The Tulip Hall in DLF Club 5 on Sunday afternoon — city’s first-of-its-kind teenagers’ literature festival.

‘One More Chapter Lit Fest’ was organised at DLF Club 5 in Gurugram on Sunday. (Yogendra Kumar/HT PHOTO)

‘One More Chapter Lit Fest’ is a literary festival ideated by 15-year-old Preesha Ohri and 22-year-old Madhav Mehrotra who wanted to create a platform where teenagers could talk about what they are reading, writing, dreaming, thinking and ideating. “I attended lit fests in different places, they were great, but always author-oriented, serious and not very interactive. I love reading, many of my friends love reading. We have strong voices, original ideas that we often translate into stories and poems. We have opinions about books, literature, authors, but no platform to talk about them,” Mehrotra said.

This lack of platform is what led the duo to think of a teens’ lit fest. The fest saw parents with teenagers and adult bibliophiles turn up to talk about books, Potter mania, poetry, social expectations and much more.

Young writers and illustrators showed their work in the fest and the most striking entries of stories, poems and illustrations of books were awarded goodies. Subjects of work ranged from post-traumatic stress disorder, teenage love, building self-esteem and finding confidence during the teenage years.

But what really set the festival apart was teenagers initiating conversations about issues that matter to them, and the role that books, reading and writing can play in dealing with those issues.

Eighteen-year old Meghna Ratra who published her anthology of poems said, “I was a completely different person before I took to writing regularly. When I was in seventh grade, I could not speak a word in front of anyone. Today, I can voice my opinions confidently. Writing gave me that confidence.”

Kids and parents listened in rapt attention teenage speakers talked about their experiences and works. A parent and resident Vikas Doshi said, “My 13-year-old daughter Tejal writes poems that are poignant, empathetic and inspirational, but when it comes to speaking she shies away. But today, in this fest, without me coaxing her, she went up on the stage and read out her work.”

Echoing Doshi’s sentiments were many parents who said there are no platforms for teenagers to express and find themselves. “We need more such inclusive, fun and non-judgmental platforms for teenagers to express themselves, something that traditional schooling does not allow them to do,” said Sarika Aggarwal, a parent and resident of Sohna Road.