The last standing independent bookstores in Hyderabad are all run by women

For 27 years, Lakshmi Myneni steered Akshara Books through Hyderabad’s shifting literary landscape. From witnessing the rise of malls to surviving the pandemic, the independent bookstore has seen it all. For years, Akshara and 67-year-old Myneni were waging a lonely battle against dwindling reading habits, bookstore chains and unbelievable discounts from online sellers. Avid reader and chartered accountant Praneet Nagarur recalls, “Compared to bookstores and reading culture in, say, Bengaluru and Chennai, Hyderabad had significantly fewer options. While readers still existed, there wasn’t an ecosystem to sustain them.”

To paraphrase Camus, in the midst of winter, an invincible summer soon made its way. In 2022, Luna Books, located in a lovely bungalow in the upscale Jubilee Hills, was founded by sisters Shilpa and Sapna Sudhkar. Off the Shelf arrived two years later, started by siblings Manasa and Meghna Gummi in the heart of the city’s IT district.