For lovers of indie books and publications, Mehrab Bookshop on Kaloor Kadavanthra Road is becoming a must-visit spot in the city. Home to a collection of over 400 books, it is also a reading space and creative corner.
The team behind the cosy little store are Bilal Javeed, who owns and manages the establishment along with Easwari Krishnadas and Misbah Shihab. Their passion for bringing people closer to independent books and publications from India and abroad is obvious in the way they run the place.
“I initially wanted to start a cafe, but the space I found turned out to be too small for one. I decided to transform it into something equally close to my heart — a bookstore dedicated to independent publishers,” shares Bilal.
Mehrab holds a world of literary secrets from around the world. Translated works from Russian, Yiddish, Czech, Norwegian, Polish, German, Arabic, French, Spanish, Korean, and Japanese all find a home here. Apart from foreign languages, they also have a collection of translated works in Indian languages — Tamil, Mizo, Gujarati, Marathi, Urdu, etc.
It might sound like too much, but the storekeepers make sure they keep things simple.
From the entrance itself, visitors can almost view the entire collection. The glass windows on three sides make the room feel open and bright, yet provide the quiet luxury of reading in a serene spot.
“We prefer keeping the space open and alive,” says Easwari. “Instead of stacking copies, we keep the collection limited and bring in new indie publishers and authors,” she adds. One of their goals is to give readers a chance to explore books that are not easily found in bigger bookstore chains, she adds.
Among the independent publishers that the bookshop collaborates with 22 are national and 11 are international. Their best-selling book to date is Pandu by Studio Niyet. And the top-selling publisher is Blaft Publications.
What makes their collection even more unique is that they also have works published by artists and publishers such as Edition Taube, Primary Information, and Reliable Copy, which are not available elsewhere in Kochi. They also have a dedicated children’s section.
Mehrab also hosts community events that bring words and art together. A spoken word poetry night is to be hosted on November 8, and an art exhibition featuring artists Mira Dayal and Poonam Jain will run from mid-December to March.
In the short time since its inception, Mehrab has indeed become a hub for literature.
The shop is open from 11am to 7pm every day, except for Mondays and Tuesdays.
(Written by Vyshnavi Ajaykumar of The New Indian Express)
