A Lesson in Sobriety

It was the longest 17 hours in JLF history. And the driest. Everyone was forced into sobriety, thanks to a sudden decision by the government that declared Jan 25 and 26 as “Dry Days”, in obeisance to the birth and death anniversary of the Prophet Mohammed, and Republic Day. Life is currently being measured by coffee spoons, and the only form of intoxication permitted on the premises since the no-smoking ban was introduced today are the panel discussions, most of which have been fairly excellent. Post-interview, there was a fine session by historian Tom Holland who delivered a rigorous yet entertaining lecture titled “Persian Fire: The First Battle for the West” ending with an astute statement, “The impact of Persia on posterity was no less than that of Greece.” Everyone was astonished and overwhelmed by the packed-beyond-capacity seating space at the Mughal Tent ahead of the session titled “Out of Africa”. However, when a housekeeping announcement was made informing the audience that the panel titled “Corner of a Distant Playing Field” was no longer happening at the Mughal tent but at the Front Lawns, an exodus took place. The African writers clearly couldn’t compete with the magnetism of cricketer Rahul Dravid. Everyone stayed put and enjoyed listening to moderator Kwasi Kwarteng put reporter Anjan Sundaram on the spot about his almost touristy perceptions of Congo, a site Sundaram has been covering for international publications like The Guardian and The New York Times. Award-winning writer Aminatta Forna spoke about her memoir “The Devil that Danced on the Water” and Mary Harper, Africa editor for the BBC World Service spoke about her experiences within the continent, making for a fairly memorable session. Everyone is counting the hours until Day 4, when we can finally break our collective fast and get into some seriously festive mood.