Pune International Literary Festival Returns On December 6–7; Shobhaa De To Inaugurate 13th Edition

Pune, December 4, 2025: Pune’s premier English literature event, the Pune International Literary Festival (PILF), is set to take place on December 6 and 7 at the Dr. Shirname Auditorium, Agriculture College, Shivajinagar. This marks the 13th edition of the festival, which continues to be one of the city’s most prominent cultural and literary gatherings.

The announcement was made by festival director and renowned author Dr. Manjiri Prabhu. The event is being organised with support from Forbes Marshall, along with partners such as the Blossom Kochhar Group, Jaico Publishing, and the Chandler Crawford Literary Agency. Rohit Enterprises will serve as the festival’s official bookstore partner.

Entry to PILF 2025 will remain free for all attendees.

The festival will be inaugurated by celebrated writer and columnist Shobhaa De on Saturday, December 6, at 10:15 am.

Dr. Prabhu said that the primary aim of the festival is to build a strong connection between authors and readers, offering a vibrant platform for creative exchange. “Our objective is to encourage knowledge-based reading and foster an appreciation for diverse arts and crafts. The discussions this year focus on understanding India’s evolving socio-cultural landscape and how we can adapt to these changes,” she added.

This year’s edition will feature more than 70 speakers and over 30 sessions spread across two halls on the campus. The festival will also host a dedicated Children’s Stream titled Treasure Island, offering a range of interactive and engaging activities for young readers.

Some of the prominent sessions at PILF 2025

A. Main Hall (Dr. Shirname Auditorium)

1. Inauguration of the 13th edition of PILF By Shobhaa De with Dr. Manjiri

Prabhu

2. Launch of Comm Dot Media Publishing’s YA & Children’s Imprint MiniMagic

3. The Sensual Self-Explorations of Love, Sex and Romance – Shobhaa De

in conversation with Manjiri Prabhu

4. A Good Life -The Power of Palliative Care, Jerry Pinto in conversation

with Bipinchandra Chaugule

5. Long Innings – The Journey of Indian Women’s Cricket Arjun Awardee

Shubhangi Kulkarni and Ex-Captain Nilima Joglekar in conversation

with Sunandan Lele

6. Being Bharat – Policies and Possibilities Aditya Pittie (Viksit Bharat:

India @2047) Anand Prasad (Unshackling the Elephant) Ravi Arora

(Making Innovations Happen) in conversation with Advait Kurlekar

7. Literary Agents – Decoding the International Landscape (Ask your

Questions) International Literary Agent Chandler Crawford in

conversation with Dr. Manjiri Prabhu

8. Global Cultural Relevance in Mystery Fiction- Manjiri Prabhu in

conversation with Sohini Roychowdhury, Launch of ‘The Grand Oxford

Mystery’

9. Essential to Essence – (A journey of Emotion) – Dr. Blossom Kochhar

(The Glow Getter’s Guide to Everyday Skincare) Samantha Kochhar

(Arribada – The Arrival), in conversation with Dr. Manjiri Prabhu

B. Treasure Island for Children (Chima Hall Space):

There are many wonderful sessions and workshops specially organised for children between ages 8 to 13 years at PILF 2025. These range from topics like:

• Energy and Self-healing,

• Reading to Dogs,

• Poetry recitation,

• Co-existence and nature,

• Mental Health,

• Book launches of young writers