Four bookstores, libraries run by public institutions

The reading material at these places includes fiction, non-fiction, history, autobiographies, and PhD thesis papers.

Metrolife has curated a list of places managed by city-based public institutions where one can read and purchase books. The reading material includes fiction, non-fiction, history, autobiographies, and PhD thesis papers.

Kannada Pustaka Pradhikara

The institution, which comes under the aegis of the Kannada and Culture Department, houses more than 2,000 book titles.  

Ambika, incharge (sales), Kannada Pustaka Pradhikara, says that all works published by the department can be found here. “Works by writers and poets like Chandrashekhara Kambara, Arakalagudu Narasingarao Krishna Rao (aka Anakru), Gourish Kaikini, D V Gundappa (aka DVG), Siddayya Puranik, and K Marulasiddappa, are currently available,” she adds. The most popular books include DVG’s ‘Jeevana Dharma Yoga’ and Anakru’s history book on the Vijayanagara emperor Krishnadevaraya. A few Sanskrit books are also available. It is located in Kannada Bhavan, JC Road.

Hours: 10 am to 5.30 pm (Monday to Saturday)

Call: 080 2210 7705. To buy books, visit kannadapustakapradhikara.com

Kannada Sahitya Parishat

The Parishat’s focus area is publishing the Kannada-English and Kannada-Kannada ‘nikhandu’ (dictionary). The institution, located in Chamarajpet, translates ‘Halegannada’ (old Kannada) books to new-age Kannada. Its bookstore has been around since 1917 and includes books from more than 100 years ago.

N S Sreedhara Murthy, publication incharge, says one can find more than 2,100 publications here. “We have translated works by Pampa, Ponna and Ranna, Kanaka Dasa, and Kumara Vyasa. We also have ‘Kumara Vyasa Bharata’ in stock. It was available for
Rs 2 in 1956 and was a household name,” he says. Scholarly works like ‘Pampa Bharata’, ‘Adi Purana’, and ‘Rajashekara Vilasa’ are some of the sought-after titles.

“We have also published rare scholastic works like the thesis paper on Tulu folklore by Vivek Rai. Commercial publishers stay away from such works,” Murthy adds.

Hours: 10 am to 6 pm (Monday to Saturday)

Call:  080 2662 3584

Sahitya Akademi

In the institution’s new building located in Jnana Jyothi Nagar, opposite Kalagrama, one can find a library and a bookshop. There are around 37,000 books in the library, which includes both fiction and non-fiction spanning varied genres.

The academy has published works in 24 Indian languages including Assamese, Bengali, Rajasthani, Sanskrit, Santhali, Bodo, Dogri, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu.

Hours: 9 am to 6 pm (Monday to Friday)

Contact: [e-mail]

Indian Institute of World Culture

The Indian Institute of World Culture (IIWC), started in 1945, is located in Basavanagudi. Its library has over 90,000 books, including works in Kannada, English, Tamil, and Sanskrit. Rukmini N Kumar, librarian with IIWC, notes that books on fiction, non-fiction, poetry, philosophy, and art and culture, can be found here. “Our English books on world history, Asian and south-east Asian history, and American history are popular,” she adds. Kannada books by writers S L Bhyrappa, Sudha Murty, and Saisuthe are sought after. The IIWC library also accepts books as donations, and hosts book sales in May and November.

Hours: 9 am to 7.30 pm (Tuesday to Sunday)

Call: 080 2667 8581