The Hindi edition of Bibi Fatima and the King’s Sons, a novel by H.H. Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, was released at the New Delhi World Book Fair today. Simultaneously, an English version of the book was also released as part of the opening ceremonies of the Fair.

Sharjah is the "Guest of Honour" at this year’s New Delhi World Book Fair which will run from today until January 13. The Fair, which has been held without a break for the past 47 years, has come to be recognised as a major event in the calendar of the global publishing world. It attracts huge crowds from the Indian capital and neighbouring states.

The multi-language editions of Bibi Fatima and the King’s Sons was released by Prakash Javadekar, India’s Minister for Human Resource Development along with Sheikh Fahim bin Sultan Al Qasimi, executive chairman of Sharjah’s Department of Government Relations and head of the emirate’s delegation to the New Delhi World Book Fair.

Also present on the dais at the release were Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri, Chairman of the Sharjah Book Authority and Baldeo Bhai Sharma, Chairman of the National Book Trust, which brought out the Hindi and English editions of Bibi Fatima and the King’s Sons. The novel narrates the story of an ambitious woman clinging to the rule of the Kings of Ormuz even after their kingdom disappeared under Portuguese occupation of Ormuz. The book is a valuable commentary on the social life in Ormuz at the time of the events in the narrative.

A large audience of authors from Sharjah and India enthusiastically applauded in appreciation of the Indian publishing industry’s tribute to Sheikh Sultan when the two editions were released. Habib Youseff Abdallah al Sayegh, an author from Sharjah, was honoured at the ceremony for his literary contributions in traditional Indian style by draping a ceremonial shawl around him and he was given a memento.