
The invention of lying by Ricky Gervais where he does everything, is a spectacle that goes out of control based on an appealing idea, but one that spirals out, fast. Check it out you might like it.
Attending the Jaipur Literature Festival 2022 after almost 6-7 years was a bittersweet experience. While it was reminiscent of the wonder and excitement of the time we would attend it as young, wide-eyed students (a dash of nostalgia!), it was also an echo of the underlying confusion & disillusionment about the world we currently inhabit (a healthy dose of nuanced opinions and complex conversations). To some extent, the sentiment arose from the fact that I wasn't sure if I would willingly attend it again, combined with the joy of meeting and conversing with such diverse people in a setting in which they are primed to be open to sharing thoughts, views and opinions. Maybe it's just residual COVID fatigue.

What stood out for me, throughout the sessions I attended and the people I met was the power of precedent - partaking in an activity wilfully the first time in order to reduce resistance when attempting it every successive time - even setting it up for automation. In someways, the pandemic had left me (maybe some of you, as well) unable to stand in a crowded space. I had simply forgotten what it was like! The start of the first day began in an anxiety riddled stupor but I eased back into society with only one enlightening conversation. Talking about nothing but the kind of speakers and books at display at the Fest this year was a safe ground. And the rest of them just flowed easier. I'm glad they did, for a lot more learning happens in the corridors outside of the session venues than within.
Three of the sessions that also emphasised the concept of precedent in the context of their their respective sessions were:
- Rukmini S discussed her new book Whole Numbers and Half Truths about the way that bad/incomplete data can signal inaccurate stories, and the ways that it has influenced several diverse narratives in India. For a behaviourlist, there's nothing more satisfying than the conclusion - “statistics alone don't tell us everything. They need context, interpretation that's free from ideological spin, and to be held up to the light.” Data is either absorbed by those comfortable with it, or are relied upon for interpretation by those considered good at interpreting them. The precedent here was the push for the average reader to look beyond stories 'informed' by data at us and asking the questions that can better explain the issues that the numbers are hoping to shed light on. The signed copy of this exciting book awaits my attention!
- Speakers in the session titled The Changing Axis: India, South Asia and the World discussed the situation between Russia and Ukraine unfolding in Eastern Europe at the moment. Foreign Policy ramifications for other nations in South East Asia were discussed in the context of the precedent being set by Russia with respect to its narrative with respect to its actions. As is always the case, narratives come from multiple perspectives, and must be considered in entirety.
- A session titled Telling It As It Is, two illustrious speakers discussed the significance of dialogue in a culture such as ours, diverse threads, inextricably linked to one another. The speakers considered that perhaps a kernel of a colonial/feudal mindset still exists in our minds, making it difficult for many people to speak back to authority, establishing aa form of frozen conformity. But with respect to dissent and protest, what we must remember is that the power to reclaim our democracy belongs to us - something we can extrapolate from the precedent (most recently) set by the experience of the farmers in North India.


Last week for the first time I went to a literature festival. I wanted to see if it is really a space where I could speak with other readers, meet authors, and generally is it all that it is made out to be? I tried to make an effort to just about do everything possible to absorb everything, I did not succeed in being sponge-bob, but attempt it - I did!
The pandemic made me imagine how it would be to have discussions in the real world. But as soon as I was there, my imagination became reality, and I realised that nothing could replace our physical presence. Being shoulder-to-shoulder with other humans and experiencing the vibrant environment after two years was something else.
The assumption about LitFest is that people generally enjoy meeting writers. Authors reading from their books helps in the active visualisation of ideas. The shared experience of a book coming alive in the minds of the attendees generates a wave necessary for the traction of ideas. We witnessed full-house-jam-packed sessions mainly with wonderful authors and orators such as Shashi Tharoor, Mahua Moitra, Abhijit Banerjee, and Manish Malhotra (yes, the fashion designer!). But amidst all the stargazing, the solitariness that we as readers and writers require was amiss. With all dazzling luminosities, it got lost.
Nevertheless, what may have worked so well for the LitFest affair was that even though participants felt more connected to a particular genre, it became engaging for almost everyone due to the diversity of the sessions. Dialogues on Urdu poetry, climate change, cookbooks, democracy and dissent, migrant crisis, data and statistics among many more themes, all of them served on the same plate. Among the people I interacted with, it was a joy for them to be around. To quote one, “..I can only imagine the tremendous amount of work needed to put up an event as monumental as JLF. Look around; everyone is so happy as if they have taken a smiley pill.” True, they did seem happy.
My first experience of the Jaipur LitFest was more or less positive. But I also felt a little divided. Amongst all the happy faces, I was tussling with a healthy dose of skepticism. 'Is this a destination to find leisure and mere escapism for the Indo-Anglians from their plush boredoms?'.
I don't wish to claim that I thoroughly documented the event. During the dialogues, the questions I kept on considering were, 'Is this the most honest talk they have ever given?' 'Is there any value addition with what they are sharing on the stage?' 'Or is it only an opportunity to promote the work they are doing for the year?' I can only hope that others also contemplated the same.
Besides the skepticism, the festival was indeed successful in creating a literary space and seed ideas in the minds of attendees (if they were attentive enough!). Of course, this experience of the literature festival has its limitations. For many, reading is an intimate experience. It gives a uniquely profound pleasure that cannot be equated with meeting the author or fellow readers. Literary festivals cannot compete with this very personal experience. With that in mind, perhaps the greatest literary festival on earth can be equated with grand tamashas like we, as Indians, make of everything.
Would I have missed out on anything if I had attended the event virtually? I think so. Most of the ideas seem to come alive from the interactions with the fellow attendees. But of course, the like-mindedness between the participants should not promote 'one size fits all'. The ideas need to move beyond words. To bring them to life, we need to nurture and evaluate them. And as long as the literary fest attempts to create this idea generating space, there is no substitute for such experiences.

- Echo chamber: This was visible in the form of the same ideas shared by the speakers, amplifying and reinforcing the same set of viewpoints.
- Halo effect: Because of the repute that this festival holds, the overall 5-days experience postulates a positive influence among the participants.
- Conformity bias: This came forward from the interaction with participants, they discussed the tendency to behave as the way everyone around them are doing, a sense of mimicking, with a lack of personal judgment.
- Out-group homogeneity bias: This bias got reflected from the interactions, people considered themselves as more diverse than they were, but from an outsider perspective, there were more similarities.
- Bandwagon effect: This was evident in terms of behaviours, attitudes and styles of the people. Example: Block print cotton clothes, simply because the majority wears it.
(*These are subjective).


Contribution by Fazli