In the age of social media and incessant scrolling, ‘Hyderabad Reads’ – a free-for-all book reading community in the city encourages people to drop their phones and return to their books.
With the intent of building a quiet reading community across India, this initiative was started by Shruti Sah and Harsh Snehanshu in Bengaluru’s Cubbon Park in December 2022. ‘Cubbon Reads’ set the stage for similar book reading communities to emerge in other States, for instance Lodhi Reads in Delhi, Victoria Memorial Reads in Kolkata, Vijayawada Reads, Gurgaon Reads, and several others. Every city has different curators managing and handling the community through social media pages.
Hyderabad Reads is curated by Md. Nusrath Ali Quadri, who works in Amazon and Biswarupa Barik, who is a college student. It began in May this year and is organised every Saturday. As many as 150 readers gather at KBR Park from 4.30 p.m. to 7 p.m. with their choice of books, snacks, mats, and are also encouraged to bring friends and families.
