The state has made its foray into literary tourism by announcing plans to set up a Malabar Literary Circuit, which is billed as the first literary tourism circuit in the country, in the budget. Literary tourism allows travelers with a literary bent of mind to trail their favourite authors and locales associated with their literary works. Countries like the United Kingdom have capitalized on literary tourism in a big way by showcasing a string of locales associated with literary giants like Shakespeares birthplace in Stratford upon Avon and Thomas Hardys Dorset, among many others.
The Malabar Literary Circuit will connect destinations like Thunchan Parambu in Tirur,the birthplace of Thunchanth Ezhuthachan, the father of Malayalam language, Beypore in Kozhikode, which houses the residences of Beypore Sultan, Vaikom Muhammed Basheer, Thasrak, the village in Palakkad on which the imaginary land of Khasak where O V Vijayans masterpiece novel Khasakkinte Ithihasam is set, and Ponnani, Thrithala and the banks of Bharathapuzha linked to the life and works of eminent writer M T Vasudevan Nair.
The government has earmarked Rs 50 crore for setting up two new tourism circuits in the budget, the other being the circuit connecting places such as Ashtamudi Lake, Munroethuruth, Kottarakara, Meenpidipara, Muttara Maruthimala, Jadayu Rock, Thenmala and Achancovil in Kollam district.