The year 2023 has turned out to be an interesting one for India. Putting the uncertainties of the pandemic behind us, we have emerged as an important power on the move. Often, we have spoken about becoming “atma-nirbhar”, and assuming the role of a “vishwaguru”. Perhaps for the first time though, in practical terms, we have achieved high levels of something our republic has always strived towards - strategic autonomy.

From the country’s leading scientists to some of the most influential socio-political voices, from serving soldiers at the highest rungs of the Indian military to experts who study crucial periods and personalities, PLF 2023 will take you on a vibrant thought-provoking journey. It will include lectures, presentations, interviews, panel-discussions, and interactions between a high-quality audience and some of India’s foremost thinkers. It will focus on sub-themes like Sri Aurobindo’s vision for a robust India, the visions that many other great personalities had for India, the role of Nari Shakti in a rising India, technology, science, military, economics, foreign policy; and how all these verticals come together to make India strategically autonomous.

The Pondy Lit Fest started in 2018, with the idea of having a festival that celebrates Indian culture, Indian history, and India’s advances in various fields. Prior to this, literature festivals in India were synonymous with the country’s anglicized elite discussing how backward India was. From the first edition itself, PLF received widespread traction. Today, it is one of the leading platforms in the country, and India’s foremost thinkers across many fields grace it. From the world of politics, it has been graced by the likes of Himanta Biswa Sarma, Arif Mohammad Khan, Baijayant Panda and K Annamalai. From the field of journalism, it has been graced by the likes of Swapan Dasgupta, Rahul Shivshankar, Tavleen Singh and Shiv Aroor. From showbiz, the likes of Vivek Agnihotri, Prasoon Joshi, Malini Awasthi and Kalki Koechlin have graced the platform. Economists like Bibek Debroy, Sanjeev Sanyal, V Anantha Nageswaran and Shamika Ravi have also been a part of PLF. Historians like Meenakshi Jain and Vikram Sampath, lawyers like J Sai Deepak, defense experts like Abhijit Iyer Mitra, and scientists like Anand Ranganathan, have been regulars at the PLF. So far, more than a hundred well-known and highly respected personalities have graced the platform, many of them on more than one occasion. Our partners through the years have included Times Now, Republic TV, BluOne Inc, Koo, the Motwani-Jadeja Foundation, Total, Swarajya Magazine, Organiser, the Government of Puducherry, and many others. Gradually, the Pondy Lit Fest is moving towards becoming India’s foremost festival of thinkers.