25 February,2026 09:30 AM IST | Mumbai | Devashish Kamble
A moment from Middle Class Dream of a Summer Night. PICs COURTESY/MANDALI TALKIES
For years now, the suburban Mumbaikar has squeezed into trains bound for CSMT, Churchgate, Andheri or Bandra, to catch gig nights and show openings. It would seem like culture has finally boarded a train in the opposite direction to meet us in the middle: Malad. Organiser and writer Amitosh Nagpal recalls a discovery at a much-spoken-about festival that recently concluded in BKC. "I found out that many of the artistes and audiences were actually residents of Madh, Malad, Goregaon and beyond. It's quite ironic that they don't have a festival closer to home," he says.
Visitors at the Malad venue during a previous cultural event
Nagpal's group Mandali Talkies, with the Koshala Literature Festival, will host the five-day showcase at Artisan Coterie. Helmed by art director Ravi Srivastava, who has worked on award-winning films like Life of Pi and Slumdog Millionaire, the multi-venue art space is spread across one acre of land. Talk about perks of hosting a gathering in the suburbs, the space can accommodate 1000 festival-goers, we learn.
While acclaimed artistes from across genres have joined the effort to push culture northwards, Nagpal admits the audience response looks uncertain. We hope our fellow Mumbaikars from the other side of the city can return the favour this weekend.
ON February 25 to March 1; 10.30 am to 11 pm
AT Artisan Coterie, Chikuwadi, Malad West.
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ENTRY Rs 99 (one-day entry pass); Rs 449 (five-day entry pass)
Guru Dutt as struggling poet Vijay in Pyaasa. PIC COURTESY/Ultra Movies on Youtube
No art festival begins without an ode to a guru. Catch Pyaasa (1957), Guru Dutt's landmark film on the life on an artiste.
ON February 25; 10.30 am
AT Studio Hall
ENTRY Rs 99 onwards
If you're lucky, you can bump into Varun Grover on a suburban local train. Don't trust the odds, catch him live at the festival, with his new special, Love, Death, & Ketchup.
ON February 28; 3 pm
AT Studio Hall
ENTRY Rs 1199
Stop by the book fair at the venue to catch up with authors. Writer and spoken word artiste Yahya Bootwala (below) will share insights on the opening day.
ON February 25; 6 pm to 7 pm
AT Book Fair
ENTRY Included in entry fees
Danish Husain performs Qissebaazi. PIC COURTESY/Danish Husain
If you've never watched a dastangoi before, tick it off your bucket list with veteran theatremaker Danish Husain's presentation, Qissebaazi.
ON March 1; 6 pm
AT Main Stage
ENTRY Rs 460
If poetry is music to your ears, sit down for an evening of harmonies featuring Sweta Padda, Prabhjot Kaur, and Nidhi Astana, among others.
ON February 26; 4 pm
AT Main Stage
ENTRY Revealed on enquiry
What if the Bard was born with the modest dreams of a Mumbaikar? Mandali Talkies's Middle Class Dream of a Summer Night takes a satirical take on the popular literary work, A Midsummer Night's Dream.
ON February 27; 4 pm
AT Studio Hall
ENTRY Rs 460
Irshad means âproceed'. Muqarrar means âonce more'. Get your mushaira etiquette right before witnessing stalwarts like Waseem Barelvi, Azhar Iqbal, and Shakeel Azmi bring the curtains down on the festival.
ON March 1; 7.45 pm
AT Main Stage
ENTRY Rs 999 onwards
