USA
SALA 2026 Brings South Asian Literature, Art and Diaspora Voices Together in California: The South Asian Literature & Art Festival (SALA) returns to Menlo College in Atherton on September 26 and 27, bringing together acclaimed writers, artists, filmmakers, scholars, scientists and cultural voices from South Asia and its global diaspora.
Produced by Art Forum SF, the seventh annual festival carries the theme “Global Gaze. South Asian Soul.” The two-day program will run from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and feature literary conversations, panel discussions, poetry, art exhibitions, performances, book signings, food and independent cultural vendors.
The festival has developed into a major Bay Area platform for contemporary South Asian literature and the arts, creating a space where artists and audiences can explore questions of identity, migration, belonging, culture and the changing relationship between South Asia and its worldwide diaspora.
A Festival Connecting India and Its Global Diaspora
SALA curator Kiran Malhotra has emphasized the festival’s role in creating connections between Indian and diaspora artists and writers. Founded and led by women including Malhotra, Mayuranki Almaula and members of the Art Forum SF team, the organization has worked to provide a platform for South Asian voices in contemporary art and culture.
Art Forum SF says it has promoted more than 250 contemporary South Asian artists across different artistic disciplines and produces programming spanning literature, dance, music and visual arts.
The festival’s programming reflects that broad approach, combining established international names with emerging writers and artists.
Nobel Laureates and Internationally Acclaimed Voices
SALA 2026 features an extensive lineup that includes Venki Ramakrishnan, Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry, and Kailash Satyarthi, Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
The program also features acclaimed artist Salima Hashmi, animator and author Sanjay Patel, and writers including Karan Mahajan, Aatish Taseer, Manil Suri, Amitava Kumar and Lakshmi Puri.
Other featured participants include Kausar Munir, Devi Laskar, Shobhaa De and Madhushree Ghosh, along with filmmakers Kanishka Aggarwal and Kajri Akhtar. Actor and filmmaker Nandita Das is also scheduled to appear.
The festival also expands its South Asian lens beyond India, with programming featuring voices from Pakistan and Nepal, as well as a session examining the distinctive Punjabi-Mexican diaspora in California.
Literature Meets Art, Film, Science and Culture
SALA’s program extends well beyond traditional literary festivals.
The official schedule includes a conversation with Venki Ramakrishnan on “The Science of Death,” a leadership discussion featuring South Asian women CEOs, sessions on global writing, Nepalese art, food and culinary traditions, poetry, filmmaking and diaspora identity.
Day two includes “The Novel and the Nation,” featuring Amitava Kumar and Manil Suri; “Karuna — The Power of Compassion,” featuring Kailash Satyarthi; “India’s Tryst with the World,” and a discussion on the Punjabi-Mexican diaspora.
The program also features Salima Hashmi in a session examining her work and career, a discussion on Sikh voices and an “In Conversation with Nandita Das” session.
The festival’s format combines indoor discussions with exhibitions, book signings, poetry readings, performances, independent vendors and food offerings, creating what organizers describe as an immersive cultural experience.
Exploring the “Human Tectonic Shifts”
The theme “Global Gaze. South Asian Soul.” is intended to examine the deeper human stories behind major global developments.
SALA organizers describe these forces as “human tectonic shifts” — gradual movements involving migration, economic displacement, climate change, power, identity, caste, class, gender, memory and belonging that can transform communities long before they become headline news.
The festival seeks to move the conversation beyond statistics and headlines and toward the personal experiences behind migration, conflict, social change and economic transformation.
Literature and the arts, organizers argue, can provide context that conventional news coverage often cannot: the stories of families, communities and individuals navigating major historical and social changes.
Giving Audiences Different Perspectives
The festival’s multidisciplinary approach also reflects the diversity within the South Asian experience itself.
Rather than presenting South Asia as a single cultural identity, SALA brings together different languages, countries, generations, artistic traditions and diaspora experiences.
The official festival describes its mission as creating an “enlightened, erudite, and immersive engagement” with South Asian literature and arts. Its 2026 theme similarly explores experiences that are rooted in particular places while resonating across borders.
That approach is visible in the 2026 program, which includes conversations about identity, leadership, food, cinema, literature, science, art, migration and social issues.
A Growing Bay Area Cultural Institution
Now in its seventh year, SALA has become an established cultural gathering for the Bay Area’s South Asian community and the wider public.
The festival describes itself as a multidisciplinary platform connecting contemporary South Asian culture with a broad Bay Area audience. Its organizers say the event has attracted thousands of attendees from the Bay Area and beyond.
Art Forum SF’s wider mission is to promote South Asian artistic voices and help bring contemporary South Asian artists into mainstream cultural spaces.
The organization also runs a SALA Writers Cohort, a six-month mentorship program for prose and poetry writers developing work for the festival, further extending SALA’s role beyond a single weekend event.
A Weekend of Books, Ideas, Art and Community
Alongside the headline speakers, SALA 2026 will provide space for emerging writers, poets and artists.
The festival’s selected artists include California-based artists such as Nikhil Dev and Vaishali Sanghavi, while its emerging writers program includes participants working across fiction, poetry, oral history and other forms of storytelling.
A special evening performance by the Anirudh Verma Collective, a contemporary ensemble rooted in Indian classical and folk traditions, is scheduled for September 26.
With its combination of literature, visual arts, cinema, science, food, performance and public conversation, SALA 2026 aims to demonstrate the breadth of contemporary South Asian creativity.
As the festival prepares to welcome audiences to Menlo College, its central message remains rooted in the power of stories — stories that cross national borders, generations and cultures while offering a deeper understanding of the South Asian experience in an increasingly interconnected world.
SALA 2026 will be held September 26–27, 2026, at Menlo College, 1000 El Camino Real, Atherton, California.
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