Jaipur BookMark 2024 celebrates 11 years

As the Jaipur BookMark (JBM) gears up for its 11th edition, it has emerged as an important B2B platform for the South Asian publishing industry. An integral part of the Jaipur Literature Festival, JBM is a platform where the business of books is discussed and rights can be bought and sold. JBM is held concurrently with the Jaipur Literature Festival and will run from 1st to 5th of February 2024.  

Over the past 10 years, JBM has gradually brought together publishers, literary agents, editors, writers, translators, librarians and booksellers under one roof adjacent to the main public festival. The platform is becoming a nerve centre for forging business relationships and fostering collaboration. 

Namita Gokhale, writer, publisher, and co-director of the Jaipur Literature Festival, said, “Jaipur BookMark continues to contribute to new synergies and exchange in the business of books. Our 2024 edition has seasoned speakers and attentive audiences from across India and around the world. We shall also be releasing our Rights Catalog and be meaningfully asserting our belief in translations and world literature.” 

Sharing her views, Manisha Chaudhry, director, Jaipur BookMark, said, “The JBM 2024 brings together a vibrant program featuring some of the leading lights of the publishing industry. Mainstream publishers, iconic Indies from India and abroad and Indian language publishers rub shoulders to start new conversations and infuse old friendships with new vigor. We aim to have five days of book-love shaken well with book-business.” 

Key highlights

Advancing its commitment to translation and showcasing the rich diversity of Indian publishing, JBM will release the Rights Catalogue with over fifty titles from five different languages. 

JBM Rights Catalogue – This extensive catalogue, meticulously crafted by JBM, features a list of books in Indian languages and English from various publishers, showcasing their availability for rights’ sales. It carries detailed information such as cover thumbnails, book blurbs, author and translator details, pagination, and the status of rights available for sale. 

Scanning the horizon of the future are sessions on AI and publishing, podcasts, and the growing closeness between publishing and OTT. Then there are conversations focused on the achievements and achievers in Indian publishing, celebrating milestones that inspire a new generation. Plus there will be diverse sessions on educational publishing, little known stories of dictionaries, and the vivid world of children’s picture books. 

JBM will host an eclectic group of publishers from Germany, Spain, Nigeria, Maldives, Mauritius, USA, and the UK, in sessions that explore possibilities of collaboration across borders. As the Jaipur BookMark celebrates a decade of influence, it continues to be a driving force in the world of publishing, propelling the business of books towards new frontiers. 

Program highlights 

Veteran publishers Urvashi Butalia and Ritu Menon in conversation with Sivapriya R will speak about 40 years of feminist publishing in India.

Meru Gokhale, Marcus du Sautoy, Charles Collier, Safir Anand in conversation with Amit Varma will discuss AI. As AI storms into various aspects of our lives, publishing is no exception. What does the future hold with AI entering the domains of editing, translation, and audiobooks? How will AI impact legal contracts and the understanding of originality in IP? This session will attempt to read the new shapes on the horizon. 

Meeta Lall, Diana Mickevičienė, Oscar Pujol and Udaya Narayana Singh will discuss how lexicographers are unsung heroes who toil to expand the universe of languages. Translators, linguists, readers, and writers all owe them a huge debt. What drives them to take on this gargantuan task which is never finished? This session will answer these questions and more! 

Amit Varma and William Dalrymple in conversation with Hemali Sodhi will discuss how podcasts bring a unique connection between voice and text. High-quality podcasts connect with listeners with an intimacy that fosters trust. How are podcasts making more listeners into readers? This is a session that will examine the deepening symbiosis. 

Atiya Zaidi, Neeraj Jain and Ananth Padmanabhan will talk about educational publishing and how it remains the commercial backbone of the Indian book industry. Leading publishers will discuss the prospects of growth in the current policy environment and the implementation of the New Education Policy. They will explore areas of common interest between educational and trade publishers. 

Sunandini Banerjee, Ahlawat Gunjan, SveinStørksen in conversation with Priya Kapoor. The book as an object of enduring beauty takes shape under the discerning eye of outstanding designers. An inspiring session where extraordinary talents will talk about their creative process and the outcome that we get to hold and cherish. 

Aakash Gupta, Ajay Jain, Aditi Maheshwari-Goyal, Vishal Pinjani, Priya Kapoor in conversation with Rahul Dixit. A visit to a bookstore should open doors to a world of magic. Bookstore wizards speak for the fine art of curation and display. This is a session that will look at how booksellers expand the circle of readers. 

Lena Luczak, Anna Katharina Fröhlich, Franziska Otto, Naveen Kishore, Shailesh Bharatwasi, Trisha de Niyogi, Annette Michael, Kannan Sundaram, Alvaro Enterria, Parminder Singh Shonkey, Milee Aishwarya, and Ravi Deecee in conversation with Arcopol Chaudhuri. This session will invite publishers from India and abroad to share information about their eclectic lists. The perfect platform to start professional matchmaking and do better business across borders. 

Gita Ramaswamy and Rosemarie Hudson in conversation with Ruchira Das will discuss the flourishing Indie publishing scene in the UK and India and how never ceases to surprise and delight, as it continues to throw up creative talents fearlessly treading new paths. There is much fertile ground for ongoing exchange between Indie publishers from the two countries. 

Luise Braunschweig, Jan Karsten and Alvaro Enterria, Gabriella Page-Fort in conversation with Naveen Kishore. Books signpost the zeitgeist of nations and seek out universalities across the world. Publishers from different countries will share what inspires them to grow their lists and what the future holds for reading communities.