Update (24th December, 2007): We’re keeping this post online for the record, but the position has now been filled. The Literature team may just need a few more student volunteers, however. If so, this blog will the first to know.

A lot of work goes into getting a week’s worth of events ready for showtime. Authors must be called and emailed. Groups must be coordinated. Infrastructure must be in place. And there’s a whole lot of running around to do. So the curators of the Literature section of the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival, Bombay, are looking for some young blood to help out.

What you will need to be:
You will need to be passionate about literature, its creation and its consumption. Ideally, you’re the type who has already put down three different versions of your author bio for your first book. You need not be young, but you had better be energetic. You will need to be confident, but not brash, persuasive, but not a pain in the neck. This is not something you can fit in after office hours, especially in January and the first half of February. So, ideally, you’re not holding down a job, or at least you must be prepared to take some time off for this. And, naturally, you’ll need to be in Bombay over the next few months (the festival is in February).

What you will need to do:
Work will be light in November, pick up a bit in December, get very demanding in January, and be pretty much insane in February, just before, during and immediately after the Festival. Your work will include making lots of calls, writing a lot of emails, keeping track of everything and making sure that the curators are kept informed. You won’t have to report to an office and keep office hours, but you will have to attend regular meetings with the curators (setting them up will be part of your job too). And you will need to be physically present at Kala Ghoda during the days the festival is on, and probably a few days before.

What you don’t get:
Money. Expenses will be covered, of course. But there will be, at most, a modest stipend. Very modest. You had better be doing this for love. If you don’t live in Bombay, you’re still welcome to apply, but please note that no living expenses will be provided.

What you get:
You will get the chance to be right there in the centre of a very happening festival. One that’s both popular and credible. You will get to network with writers of all descriptions. You will get a worthy addition to your CV. (: Last year’s intern now works in a leading publishing house. And yes, she heard about the Kala Ghoda opportunity through us. :)

If this interests you, please write to the Literature curator, R Sriram at rsriram9 at gmail dot com, with this exact subject line: Kala Ghoda Arts Festival intern. In your mail, tell him why you want to do this, and why you think you can do it. Paste your CV into your email (no attachments, please).

Do this quickly. Sriram and the curating team would like to take this decision ASAP. Work on the 2008 Festival has already started.

P.S. The Literature Intern automatically gets to be part of this blog!