The Bookworm, one of the popular bookstores in Bengaluru, faced an existential crisis two years ago, when COVID-19 forced the world to shut shop indefinitely. Its main source of income was the brick-and-mortar store on Church Street. The owner, Krishna Gowda, had planned a website, but it was still under construction. Had he known, he would have expedited the process. Now, caught unawares by a pandemic, he worried about the future of his beloved bookshop, which he established after selling books on pavements.
Then, something unexpected happened. Some of his regular customers started Whatsapping him a list of books they needed. Using delivery apps, which were functional for most of the lockdowns, he could send them their orders. For Krishna and his bookstore, this was a lifeline. After surviving the last two years, The Bookworm is now selling more books than it used to pre-pandemic.
The Bookworm’s story is not exceptional. Most of the city’s independent bookstores incredibly withstood the ravages of the pandemic and see a never-before-seen surge in sales. And, the owners we spoke to reckon the reading community’s support was vital. “They could have availed the convenience of the ecommerce platforms,” says Krishna, “Instead, they chose to buy from an independent book store. I have a great sense of gratitude for them.”
Enduring fondness
It all began in 1905, when Higginbothams set up the city’s first bookshop on what is now MG Road. Ever since there have been several bookshops, over the following decades, that formed and fostered a reading culture in Bengaluru. The old-fashioned facade, which once used to see a few carriages and bicycles occasionally pass through MG Road, now witnesses the everyday commotion of an ever-growing city.
Boomers of the city still cherish Select Bookshop, set up in 1945. A lawyer from Andhra, KBK Rao, started it from his friend’s garage on Museum Road. The shop was moved to MG Road and, later, to Brigade Road. Rao’s son KKS Murthy, an aeronautical engineer, took over the business. The shop, despite being dwarfed by the frenzied eruption of concrete structures around it, continues its services quietly.
The Premier Book Shop, started in 1971 by TS Shanbhagh, is another place that residents in their 50s and 60s get nostalgic about. It was a favourite haunt for several writers from the city. When Shanbhagh closed operations in 2009, it evoked eulogies from all quarters of the city’s literary circle.
Blossom Book House and The Bookworm, both set up in the early 2000s, continued the legacy of Bengaluru’s independent bookstores. More stores sprouted one after the other across the city. About 10 of them, however, popped up on Church Street alone, making it a bookshop hub of sorts. “I’ve not seen anything like this anywhere else,” says writer Anita Nair, “The Charing Cross in London used to have all these old book shops. But this proximity of having all bookstores on one street makes Bangalore unique.”
Fellow novelist, Zac O’Yeah, believes Bengaluru can become “the world’s bookshop capital.” The BooksHopping event, which he put together with writer Shatrujeeth Nath, was an extension of this belief.
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