GEORGE TOWN, Nov 2 — The annual George Town Literary Festival (GTLF) this year will kick off on November 25, featuring online programmes in the form of podcasts and videos in both English and Malay.
The four-day event, which will end on November 28, is themed “Mikro-cosmos” to explore the spirit of cosmopolitanism and the connection among people through literature, language and ideas.
The festival, directed by Pauline Fan and curated by Izzuddin Ramli, will feature programmes with speakers from Malaysia and other countries in South-east Asia.
Among the notable Malaysian guest speakers to be featured include Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir, Sabahan writer Ruhaini Matdarin, Malaysian Tamil writer M. Navin and actor Wan Hanafi Su.
International speakers include Indonesian novelist Eka Kurniawan, Japanese writer Minae Mizumura, German poet Jan Wagner, Canadian writer Souvankham Thammavongsa, New Zealand novelist Tina Makereti, Indian writer Meena Kandasamy, and Kenyan-US writer Mukoma Wa Ngugi.
At least 70 writers and speakers have been lined-up for the event.
This year, the festival is also collaborating with the Embassy of Italy to feature a discussion on Italian poet Dante Alighieri.
GTLF 2021 also has a collaboration with Svara journal for a special publication called Muara, which will be launched during the festival.
The book will feature essays, lectures, short stories, poetry, book reviews and translations from writers from Malaysia, the region and the world.
The festival is produced by Penang Convention and Exhibition Bureau (PCEB) and supported by the Penang government.
