By the time you read this, the banners and signage representing an annual literature fest in the city would probably be in the process of being removed and kept away until next year. Jholawallahs, Page-3 types, silver-haired adda-loving uncles, eager-beaver collegians - the place typically attracts all kinds. In fact, a quick dekko of the crowds at the venue always brings a smile to the face of the bibliophile. And by the end of the four-day festival, the official word on the numbers in attendance would include words like 'throngs', 'thousands' and the like. In fact, scenes from its temporary bookstore are encouraging, making one believe that the physical bookstore has a shot at survival in the city.

Yet, these bookstores - islands of intellect and literature - seem to be battling to stay alive - and have been phased out without as much as a goodbye or a promise to return. The timing couldn't have been more ironic. Recently, as the literature festival kicked off at its SoBo venue, a colleague mentioned the shuttering of Om Book Store inside a Lower Parel mall. It was the second bookstore that met with this fate in the same mall. The coincidence of the location wasn't lost on us. Another example to reiterate the commercial whitewashing of the city; underlining the reality that it doesn't have room for brick-and-mortar bookstores anymore.