Expect Kolkata’s 50th edition next year to court Washington aggressively; organisers have already floated a “guest of honour” package to the US consulate, contingent on 2027 budget lines.

Geopolitics on the pavilion floor

The 49th International Kolkata Book Fair (22 Jan–3 Feb) is quietly rewriting the atlas of global publishing. China re-entered after a 15-year absence, Ukraine mounted its first-ever national stand, and the United States – absent for the first time in two decades – cited “budget cuts” for its withdrawal.

With at least 2.5 million visitors expected, the fair is being watched as a barometer of soft-power priorities.

China: consulate-run, publisher-light

No Chinese trade houses secured tables this year; instead, the consulate shipped 200 bilingual titles and a Great-Wall photo-booth to “strengthen bilateral cultural exchanges”. The arrangement mirrors Beijing’s recent preference for embassy-curated showcases in the Global South, sidestepping private-sector rights negotiations.

Ukraine: war-time soft-power push

Kyiv’s stand – organised by the Ukrainian embassy and local diaspora – foregrounds contemporary war literature, children’s picture books about displacement, and a rights catalogue from the Ukrainian Book Institute. Industry scouts note that English-language co-edition deals for graphic non-fiction are already under discussion.

US absence: Trump-era hangover?

While the US consulate attributes the no-show to “resource realignment,” Indian trade sources link it to lingering Trump-administration cuts to cultural-diplomacy budgets that slashed overseas book-fair allocations in 2017–20 and have not been fully restored.

The American Center library in Kolkata remains open, but without a fair presence the US cedes ground to Britain, Germany and, increasingly, China.

Rights floor takeaway

Foreign-rights agents report that Argentine narrative non-fiction (the fair’s theme country) and Ukrainian illustrated titles are attracting pre-Bologna buzz, while Chinese fiction – available only for display – generated curiosity but zero deals.

The empty US pavilion, by contrast, left a 60m² geopolitical hole that Indian publishers filled with remaindered STEM backlists.

The View From The Beach

Expect Kolkata’s 50th edition next year to court Washington aggressively; organisers have already floated a “guest of honour” package to the US consulate, contingent on 2027 budget lines.

This post first appeared in the TNPS LinkedIn newsfeed.