South Asia Institute’s Literary Festival

Chicago’s first annual South Asian American Lit Fest (SAALF) 2026 is a free, one-day immersive diaspora event celebrating literary traditions and cultural expression. The festival showcases the depth and diversity of South Asian writing and highlights its intersection with Chicago’s vibrant literary landscape.

Inaugural Keynote Speaker — Fatimah Asghar

Award-winning poet, screenwriter, educator, and performer Fatimah Asghar will deliver the festival's inaugural keynote. Their work explores identity, memory, migration, family, and belonging, and has become a defining voice in contemporary South Asian American literature. Asghar is the author of the acclaimed poetry collection If They Come for Us and the novel When We Were Sisters, and the co-creator of the Emmy-nominated web series Brown Girls.

Reserve your free ticket.

Additional speakers and the full festival schedule will be announced soon.

The Chicago Literary Hall of Fame will be one of South Asia Institute's partners for the literary festival.