Jaipur Literature Festival Expands Across the United States and Canada, Bringing JLF to Seven Cities in 2026

The dates and cities of JLF USA 2026

JLF USA and JLF Toronto welcome leading writers, thinkers and cultural voices across North America, with Los Angeles and Toronto joining the 2026 program.

NEW YORK CITY, NY, UNITED STATES, August 18, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- JLF USA and JLF Toronto, the US and Canadian editions of the Jaipur Literature Festival, return in 2026 with their largest presence yet, bringing the festival to seven cities across the United States and Canada from September 11 to October 4. With Los Angeles and Toronto joining established programs in North Carolina, Seattle, Colorado, New York and Houston, the 2026 editions bring together writers, thinkers, historians, artists, entrepreneurs and cultural voices from across the world for conversations that cross borders, disciplines and perspectives.

A Global Literary Festival with a Growing International Presence: Produced by Teamwork Arts, JLF USA and JLF Toronto carry forward the spirit of the Jaipur Literature Festival (which Tina Brown called “The greatest literary show on Earth”), bringing its distinctive mix of literature, ideas and culture to audiences across North America. The 2026 program comes ahead of the landmark 20th edition of the Jaipur Literature Festival in Jaipur January 14-18, 2027, marking an important moment in the festival’s continuing international journey.

Leading Writers, Thinkers and Cultural Voices: The 2026 program features an exceptional lineup of writers, thinkers and cultural voices, including Shashi Tharoor, appearing in North Carolina and Los Angeles; Shekhar Kapur, appearing in Seattle and Los Angeles; Yann Martel, Scott Anderson and Priya Anand in Seattle; Vijay Seshadri in North Carolina; Tanya Talaga in Colorado; Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni in Houston; Kai Bird in New York; and Caroline Elkins in Los Angeles and Seattle. The wider program also features Manil Suri, Mahmood Mamdani, Nikky-Guninder Kaur Singh, John Vaillant, Martin Puchner, Sam Dalrymple, Vinita Gupta, Vikram Vij, Devesh Kapur, Arvind Subramanian, Lakshmi Puri, Daniel Peña, Kanwal Rekhi, Sonia Reemes and Nitin Seth, among others. Together, these voices bring perspectives from literature, history, geopolitics, technology, business, culture and the arts to some of the defining questions of our time, while reflecting the literary and cultural diversity of the cities in which the festival takes place.

Conversations Shaping Our Times: Artificial intelligence and technology, geopolitics, history, empire, Indigenous rights, climate change, faith, migration, diaspora, entrepreneurship, art and food are among the subjects that will shape this year’s conversations. From discussions on the impact of AI on work, culture and society to conversations on the changing global balance of power, the program explores many of the ideas shaping contemporary life. Shashi Tharoor, Kai Bird and Caroline Elkins bring historical and geopolitical perspectives, while Yann Martel, Scott Anderson, Vijay Seshadri and Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni add diverse literary voices to the program. Tanya Talaga brings Indigenous perspectives to the Colorado program, alongside conversations that explore the intersections of history, culture, technology, art and society.

Rooted in the Character of Each Host City: A defining feature of the festival is its connection with the character and communities of each host city. The programs are developed in partnership with local institutions and cultural organizations, creating a festival experience that is not simply a touring program but a series of locally-rooted encounters. In New York, for example, the 2026 edition will take place across venues including Asia Society, The National Arts Club and The Center for Fiction. Toronto, the festival’s first Canadian edition, will bring the Festival to new audiences on September 25and 26.

Los Angeles and Toronto Join the JLF Network: The Festival’s newest destinations add further dimensions to its presence across the United States and Canada. JLF Los Angeles, taking place from September 14-16, marks the festival’s debut in the city, while JLF Toronto, taking place on September 25=26, marks its first edition in Canada. Across the seven-city program, audiences will encounter conversations spanning literature, history, politics, science, technology, art, music and culture, alongside special collaborations and events.

Art, Storytelling and Creative Expression: The program will also feature a travelling visual art exhibition by globally-acclaimed documentary photographer Vicky Roy, whose work will be presented in Los Angeles and Seattle, adding another dimension to JLF USA’s exploration of storytelling and creative expression.

Seven Cities, One Festival: The seven-city JLF 2026 program begins in North Carolina from September 11-13, followed by Los Angeles from September 14-16, Seattle from September 17-20, Colorado from September 22-23, Toronto from September 25-26, New York from September 29-30, and Houston from October 2-4.

Taking the Spirit of JLF to Audiences Around the World: JLF USA is part of the growing international presence of the Jaipur Literature Festival, carrying the Festival’s commitment to books, ideas, dialogue and cultural exchange to audiences around the world, including the UK, Ireland, Spain and more. The Jaipur Literature Festival will celebrate its landmark 20th edition in Jaipur from January 14-18, 2027.

More on the festival at our new website: https://jlflitfest.org/jlf-usa

PRESS QUERIES:
For US and international media queries and interview requests, please contact:
Sree Sreenivasan
Email both jlfusa@Digimentors.group AND sree.sreenivasan1@gmail.com
+1-646-391-3526 is cell and WhatsApp
http://linkedin.com/in/sreenivasan

For India media queries and interview requests, please contact:
Teamwork Arts:
Manas Bhardwaj: +91-8130711101 | manas@teamworkarts.com
Apeksha Bajaj: +91-9654880195 | apeksha@teamworkarts.com

THANK YOU!

If you forward this to colleagues, please include this info:
If you’re a journalist/blogger/photographer/creator and would like to get on our media lists (including for our series of virtual press previews, please fill in this form. Questions and comments to jlfusa@digimentors.group.

Sreenath Sreenivasan
Digimentors for JLF USA
+1 646-391-3526
email us here

JLF USA Festival Film