Bollywood celebrities Madhuri Dixit, Naseeruddin Shah, Shyam Benegal, Om Puri, Rohini Hattangadi and Tom Alter would be among the many panelists and performers attending the Lucknow Literature Carnival to be held here Nov 28-30, the organizers said Tuesday.

Lucknow Literature Carnival founder chairman Jayant Krishna confirmed the presence of Bollywood diva Madhuri at the fest.

He told IANS the event would be conducted on the lines of the Jaipur Literature Festival and would include book launches, literary readings, panel discussions, workshops, screenings and cultural performances.

The carnival would be an integral part of the Lucknow Mahotsav 2014 organised by the Uttar Pradesh government.

There will be around 100 authors, poets, scriptwriters, panelists and performers over the three days. Pre-carnival events would start Nov 22.

Other celebrities who would attend the event include Mark Tully, Pavan Verma, Javed Akhtar, Nayantara Sehgal, Muzaffar Ali, Atul Tewari, Sharib Rudaulvi, Sayeda Hameed, Toby Sinclair, Tuhin Sinha, Ashwin Shanghi, Waseem Barelvi, Anwar Jalalpuri, Mrinal Pandey, Manjul Bajaj, Dolly Thakore, Gillian Wright, Srinivasan Jain, Noor Zaheer, Rakshanda Jalil, Sathya Saran and Suresh Jindal.


The carnival's founder director Kanakh Rekha Chauhan said there would be a tribute on Begum Akhtar's birth centenary by acclaimed folk singer Malini Awasthi, the play "Main Tumhe Phir Miloongi: Amrita-Imroz Letters" by Salim Arif and Lubna Salim, mushaira and Nazarana-e-Khusro.

There would also be tributes to Amrit Lal Nagar, Yashpal, Bhagwati Charan Verma, Majaaz Lakhnavi and Ali Sardar Jafri.

The Lucknow Literature Carnival 2014, Krishna said, has been planned on a much bigger scale and would result in increased footfall of tourists into this city famous for its architectural marvels, culinary delights, intricate chikankari embroidery, soulful classical music and the famed kathak dance.