In Capital Letters books on sports and Delhi

The countdown to the Commonwealth Games has begun and it's not just CGC officials who are running against a deadline.

The countdown to the Commonwealth Games has begun and it’s not just CGC officials who are running against a deadline. The clock is ticking in publishing houses where editors are pouring over manuscripts to ensure that when tourists visit India for the games,ample reading material is available to them. Some photographers are updating their images of Delhi and publishers are scouting for fresh fiction talent to give an insight into life in the Capital through its citizens.

“There’s going to be a huge influx of tourists who will look for books to help them understand Delhi better,” says Shobhit Arya,publisher,Wisdom Tree. He intends to give the readers a glimpse of Delhi through the photographs of Ranjit Oberoi that are being compiled in a coffee table book. “This will include photographs of our famous monuments juxtaposed with inhabitants of the city,” adds Arya. Also in the pipeline is a revised edition of the 2006 publication Commonwealth Journey: From Melbourne to New Delhi by shooter Gagan Narang. “Additions will be made to the book to chart the changes in Delhi,” explains Arya.

Also documenting developments in the Capital will be a Full Circle publication. “Our book will include details about new construction and renovation plans,” says Priyanka Malhotra,owner,Full Circle. While Malhotra will release a lifestyle guide to Delhi that will feature suggestions on places to shop,visit and dine,Harper Collins will provide this information in a set of four books on Delhi. “This will help people explore Delhi and understand its culture,” says VK Karthika chief editor,publisher,HarperCollins India. Also part of her bouquet is a book on the history of the Commonwealth authored by Boria Majumdar and Nalin Mehta. Sharing his experience of staying in Delhi will be New Yorker Dave Prager in Our Delhi Struggle that is scheduled for release in July and Lahore-based Raza Rumi will present his opinion of Delhi in Delhi via Lahore . “He looks at Delhi from the perspective of someone who has grown up in Lahore which is across the border but similar to Delhi in many ways,” says Karthika,who recently launched the Delhi Noir anthology.

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The streets of Delhi and its corridors of power will also provide a plot for fiction. Hachette will publish Krishan Partap Singh’s Raisina Trilogy which is set in the Lutyen’s zone. “Discussions are on for a book featuring essays on various sports,” says Nandita Aggarwal,editorial director,adult and business division,Hachette.

The Commonwealth plan for publishers,meanwhile,also includes conceptualising of marketing and distribution strategies. Arya,for instance,intends to have a tie-up with tourist agencies and will sell the books in coaches that provide guided tours of the city. Priya Kapoor of Roli Books is planning a display at her store CMYK and is making a list of speakers whom she plans to invite to talk about the city during the games. “We expect high footfalls due to proximity to the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium. Discussions and interactions will be held at the store and we will stock more books on Delhi,” says Kapoor who already has up on the show window Malvika Singh and Rudranghsu Mukherjee’s New Delhi: Making of a Capital,that discusses transformation of New Delhi into the capital of India from 1912 to 1922.

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