1st day, 1st show: Crowd takes over book fair with record 2.5L footfall
Times of India | 24 January 2026
Kolkata: The first day of the 49th International Kolkata Book Fair (IKBF) witnessed a record-breaking footfall of around 2.5 lakh, setting a landmark opening turnout, as estimated by the event's organisers, the Publishers and Booksellers Guild.
As the fair falls on an extended weekend with four-day holiday this time, guild officials believe that the book fair may shatter all previous footfall records.
Friday, the fair's opening day, was a holiday for Saraswati Puja and Netaji Jayanti, followed by Saturday and Sunday. On account of Republic Day, Monday is also a holiday. The fair will see another weekend next week before it concludes on Feb 3. Guild officials said book lovers would make the most of the four-day holiday in a row. "The book fair this time already has the added advantage of having direct metro connectivity from Howrah, which will lead to more turnout. If Friday's footfall is any indication, the book fair this time will break all previous records in terms of number of visitors," said a guild official. Last year, around 27 lakh visitors thronged the fairground. Books worth Rs 23 crore were sold—the highest till date—-last year. The inaugural day, coinciding with Saraswati Puja, witnessed a vibrant and enthusiastic crowd. From school children, college-goers to the elderly, book lovers of all age groups thronged the fairground. Students flocked to the ground in groups. As the day progressed, the footfall kept increasing. "Kolkata Book Fair is always special. It being Saraswati Puja today (Friday), several young couples—girls draped in red and yellow sarees and boys donning ‘punjabi' dropped in. It was a different vibe," said Arundhati Roy, a Salt Lake resident. There were long queues, as usual, in front of the stalls of big publishing houses. "Many visited the fair not just to buy books but to also spend some good time with friends and family," said Pulak Mitra, another book lover.