Unmesha, an International Literature Festival will be held in Shimla from June 16 to 18 as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations with the support of the Department of Art and Culture, Government of Himachal Pradesh, the Sahitya Akademi said in a statement.

The festival organised by the Union Culture Ministry and Sahitya Akademi will be held at the heritage buildings, the Gaiety Heritage Cultural Complex and the Town Hall, In the Ridge in Shimla.

The inaugural session will take place in the main auditorium of Gaiety Theatre on June 16 from 10 am to 12 noon wherein Ministers of State for Culture Arjun Ram Meghwal and Meenakshi Lekhi, and Andhra Pradesh Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan will grace the occasion, the Sahitya Akademi stated.

Unmesha is the largest literature festival in the country with over 425 writers, poets, translators, critics and distinguished personalities from various walks of life from 15 countries, including India, representing over 60 languages and 64 events.

The festival will feature discussions, presentations, poetry and story readings, performances, among others,,covering a wide range of topics such as "Cinema & Literature," "World Classics & Indian Writing," "Tribal Writings," "Writings of IGBTQ c:ommunlty of india," "Media & Literature," "Bhakti Literature" & "Uniting Cultures through Translation."

The evenings will feature cultural performances - Bharatanatyam by Sona! Mansingh, Tala Vadya Kacherl by P. Jayabhaskar, Nagara by Nathulal Solanki and Dastan-e-Karn, Dastangol by Mahmood Farooqui, the Sahitya Akademi stated.

It further added that the event is free for the public on all the days and during the festival, there will be a display of about 1,000 books related to Indian freedom movement will be on display and the publications of five indian publishers wiII be up for sale.