The event everybody waits for. The annual Book Fair in Calcutta is an institution in the city that loves books and writers. More popular at this time of year than night clubs, discotheques or entertainment parks, the Book Fair seems to pull in more and more people each year.

Unlile Book Fairs in western cities, this has more of a family entertainment approach rather than that of a trade fair. Browsing through favourite titles is perhaps the most favourite game as is doing the rounds around pavilions soaking in the thoughts and views of reputed literateurs and celebrities.

Ananda Publishers, the Calcutta based publication house, sees an enormous number of visitors and fans, as expected. But then the crowrds literally spoill out of the fair area to the neighboring streets. Popular buys? Anthologies, dictionaries and text books were the most traded items. Children's literature remain evergreen.

And where there's books, can food be far behind? Food kiosks, not surprisingly, do extremely well. And there are other treasures. Live entertainment, book reading, singing.......let the tradition continue!