The discussion hovered on the theme ‘Fiction holds a mirror to society’, with Guha narrating anecdotes from his long stint as an author.

He dwelt on how small episodes and brief encounters with people could inspire a writer. Many a time, the author drew on his own experiences to illustrate the point.

Social division, poverty, Naxalism, corruption — the discussion veered to touch upon all aspects of social and individual lives.

Speaking on poverty and its influence on literature, Guha said how it “gnaws at you, urges you to write and inform the affluent city-dwellers that we constitute only a small section of society.”

Writer Bani Basu, a panelist in the event, said: “Though it was almost impossible to rule over individual choices of readers with one’s literature, a small level of awareness does percolate down to the readers.”

On the second day of the festival tomorrow, the film The Colour Purple will be screened. This will be followed by a discussion on it.