A quiet reading community, now a worldwide reading movement (70+ cities). 📚 Meet us at tree 3265, Cubbon, BLR, on Saturdays, 9 am to 1 pm to just read! 📖
Well, we’ll be there. So, even if you’re planning to come solo, come along and find more readers in the city!
We sit individually and read silently from 9 am to 1 pm, and at 1, we huddle for book stacking and group pics. 😊
20th edition of
@cubbonreads
broke all records. 300+ readers showed up on a Saturday morning at Cubbon to read in silence together. :)
There were painters, there were writers, and there were but of course readers everywhere in our side of park. Hope to see you next Saturday! :)
In 21st edition of
@cubbonreads
, we hijacked Cubbon Park with our silence & books. 400+ readers showed up & read till the end. The video shows what we saw. Number of books in the stack is doubling weekly. Thank you,
#Bangalore
!
Try
@lalbaghreads
tomorrow if you missed today!
In this heat, Cubbon is 3-4 degrees cooler than the rest of the city, and is reminiscent of Bengaluru that used to be. Green, cool, windy. We sit for hours without a speck of sweat on our foreheads. This is no less than time travel to a beloved city before we lost it to concrete.
Halfway through the year and Bangalore is Bangloring again! Groups are becoming bigger, orange is being tossed again, legs are being tanned again, windcheaters are back, no speck of sweat. All because our evenings are graced with the overspills of the open faucets in the sky. 🌱
The 24th edition of
@cubbonreads
saw readers, painters, crocheters, chess players, writers, professors, and moms & dads reading out quietly to kids.
Must have been the greatest turn out ever. As a movement, we decided to stop counting altogether. How many can one count anyway?
Cubbon Reads became a Pet Party (should we say pawrty?) in our 46th edition last Sat!
Over 20 pet parents came with their books & furry babies, inviting other readers to say quiet hellos and give warm hugs. The resident canines of Cubbon kindly maintained the silence! 😻🐶📚
Exactly a year ago, the first Saturday of 2023, two of us cycled to Cubbon, carrying two books & a mat with them. One year & chapters in 70+ cities later, 500+ readers joined the New Year edition of
@cubbonreads
today! Thank you for making our community a worldwide movement. 🥳
27th edition of Cubbon Reads had the park filled with 500+ readers, writers & poets, painters, origami artists, typewriters, cute cats, paper frogs that jumped. 💜
We had the 1st edition of two new communities Cubbon Writes & Cubbon Folds, besides 8th edition of
@Cubbonpaints
.
Come good weather and the way Bengaluru flocks Cubbon is unparalleled.
This is from today, from our 69th edition. The sun was benevolent, the winds were cool and the park was full. 🤩
28th edition of
@cubbonreads
had 500+ attendees reading, writing, origami-ing, painting silently in the windy, cloudy Bangalore that held rain within.
The love for reading cuts across generations. Given how non-performative it is, it helps keep our community non-hierarchical.💜
The 30th edition of Cubbon Reads was celebrated by a pleasant sun along with hundreds of readers, painters, origami artists, crocheters, coders & even disc jockeys, who were silently plugged in on their headphones, making music.
Today, we celebrate the birth of Cubbon Knits. :)
It was a riot of colours with umbrellas everywhere. The 26th edition of Cubbon Reads brought 300+ readers who remained immersed in their books despite the constant drizzle.
The edition was special because it marked the birth of a new subchapter, Cubbon Folds, for origami lovers.
We hit a landmark today. 500+ attendees showed up at the 22nd edition of
@cubbonreads
today! The video captures.
Thank you Bangalore for believing in our mission of turning reading into a more public affair, and silently so, to inspire the world to read more. :)
We might have just organised India's biggest Secret Santa for readers.
@cubbonreads
completed its 50th edition today. Not a Saturday was missed since we started on the first Saturday of 2023. 💪
Thank you for being a part of our journey, as a reader & a well-wisher. 📚
Sikkim has adopted the concept of Reads in all its schools, thanks to the singular efforts of Yoga Dolma, the IAS officer and the DC of Gyalshing district, who visited us in Bengaluru after learning about
@cubbonreads
.
So much power government officials have to effect change! 😍
At 25th edition of
@cubbonreads
today, we celebrated the silver jubilee of our silent reading editions in Bengaluru's most loved park.
In just six months, we're now a global reading movement, 60+ chapters gathering 3000+ people worldwide every weekend to read! Thank you, BLR! 💚
A book, a snooze, a laugh and the warm sun in a breezy park— what better way to spend a Saturday morning? ✨ See you next Saturday?
We meant on* the green grass.
📸 + 📝:
@anushcache
When we speak with readers, we find how their library mostly comprises of books written by men. Most of it is unconscious. Pop culture & patriarchy come together, shaping what we read. To repair this blind spot, we're inviting recommendations of your fav books by women. Suggest!
22nd edition of
@cubbonreads
had 600+ attendees, but such surreal silence that it felt we were there alone. Thank you, BLR 💚
Our sister-community
@cubbonpaints
had 80+ artists show up for its 3rd meet. Love how art & literature are tied together by the common thread of silence.
42 consistent weeks of reading together with strangers in the park! Tell us a better way to hang out publicly with fellows loving the same things as us on a Saturday noon. ☀️
If you clicked pics at Cubbon Reads, share them tagging us. 📸
The 38th edition of CubbonReads unfolded beneath a beautiful pastel sky.
Colourful flowers blanketed us and made the park feel magical and lovely.🌸🌼
Amidst this tranquility, stray dogs found comfort on our mats and curled up beside us for their naps. ☀️
The 37th CubbonReads welcomed a picturesque morning after rain, with chirping birds and the sun🌞. Cubbon Park, with its enchanting autumn charm, offers space to everyone for picnics and reading🤗. Book lovers find their haven here, escaping into their tales, creating magic 📚✨.
Here was our 39th Cubbon Reads, a serene October morning at Cubbon Park 🌳, soft soil, minty air, pale yellow butterflies 🦋, cherished readers on sheets, under tree trunks, and on grass 🌿. Newcomers shared about feeling a sense of belongingness in our silent reading initiative
Today,
@nammayatri
surprised us with this notification sent to their users at 9 am sharp, when we began.
What a gentle and thoughtful way to remind Bengaluru of
@cubbonreads
and
@cubbonpaints
happening every Saturday. Thank you! 💚
The 34th edition of CubbonReads began slowly but quickly drew hundreds of readers 😇. With numerous solo readers, parents, and pet owners, Cubbon Park was a heartwarming sight to behold, alongside fluttering butterflies🦋. We continue the tradition of the color-coded book stack📚
29th edition of
@cubbonreads
had everything: great weather, benevolent sun, grandparents, kids, pets, crochet & origami artists, writers, painters and many more readers than last time.
Just so we didn't miss butterflies,
@cubbonfolds
ensured everyone went home with a paper one.
True to the spirit of Holi, 64th edition of Cubbon Reads was a riot of colours yesterday. Our readers donned traditional wear on this special Holi Edition. 🏳️🌈
Highlight: Observing Shaheed Diwas, we met a reader from Punjab who was engrossed in Bhagat Singh's Why I Am An Atheist.
Owing to the heat wave grappling Bengaluru, we changed our timings last Sat. From 9am-2pm, now
@cubbonreads
is from 8am-12pm every Sat.
So while we start & end early, you're free to read beyond 12. At 12 pm, we assemble for a group photo + book stacking. See you this Saturday?
Oh, what a sunny day! 65th edition had all things bright. Bright friends, bright grass, bright books. 🌞
Heartening to spot so many families with the moms & dads immersed in books while kids were busy with bats (ipl fever, huh?) and chess boards and of course, with books.
The policing we face at Cubbon from guards, who scold us for carrying mats, stealthily shoot videos of us sitting & reading is alarming. What's the point of a public space if public can't use it? Parks should collaborate with communities rather to make parks safe for everyone.
Cubbon Park has become a nightmare for a lot of communities. The harmless Instagram group which meets to make friends called WePlay.Blr was bullied by a stranger who filed an FIR against them for obscenity. Police, Cubbon guards and admins, all ganged up on them.
The magic of words met the serenity of nature at our 35th edition. The park, in its golden glow, came alive with a heartwarming sight for our readers🌿. In the diverse tapestry of book lovers, we welcomed numerous solo readers who discovered the beauty of solitude in our midst ✨
Late post for our 33rd edition. Someone celebrated their birthday morning, Jain Univ professors got students from other states here as part of city darshan, more of us found branches to lean on and read, and a failed colour coding experiment 😅 — to be planned better next time 😋
Hundreds of readers along with origamists, painters, writers and knitters turned up at our 31st edition despite the long weekend 🇮🇳 When the city has such a bright breezy weather, who wouldn’t want to visit the park? We’ll meet on Saturday again, same spot, 9 am to 2 pm. ✌🏼
Our chapters in Bengaluru, across India and across the world with reading session tomorrow, 17th, Saturday. The reading movement is global now. 😇
Every chapter is on Instagram and can be followed there.
Similar set of other cities for Sundays to be posted tomorrow. 🎉
At the 32nd edition, the skies turned cloudy one second, sunny next & drizzly right after. Besides the adults, lots of kids and 🐶 were seen.
It’s also been an exciting moment for the Cubbon Knits community finding more of its tribe from amongst the readers. So, next week, maybe?
Catch our co-founders speaking with the author Brinda Narayan in the session titled, Not a Book Club: The Story of Cubbon Reads, at
@BlrLitFest
om Sunday, 5 pm.
The two-day festival with hundreds of authors is happening this weekend at The Lalit Ashok, Bengaluru.
36th CubbonReads : A harmonious day of reading, nature, and community. Children's adventures, blooming flowers, and the rustling leaves created a joyful symphony. Encouraging citizen-led communities, let's preserve our reading oasis. Embrace literature's bond with nature. 📚🌼
We're in
@htcity
today! :)
Follow the silent chapters across India:
@lalbaghreads
on Sunday mornings in Bengaluru,
@lodhireads
on Saturday evenings in Delhi and
@juhureads
on Saturday evenings in Mumbai. It's a movement now! ✌️
We received a heartwarming message all the way from Bangladesh.
When we asked where could we find the Instagram handle of Bangladesh Reads, we were told that most of Bangladesh is active on Facebook, not Insta, and the community is thriving there, spreading beyond just Dhaka. 🤩
Our founders document the travails of the chapter curators wrt the unsaid rule of BBMP parks: sitting on the grass isn't allowed. By talking to administrators, horticulturists & policy makers, they ask: what use is a public space if not for public use?
Cubbon Park is all purple and yellow. Join us with your bpokz in the cool shade of Cubbon trees for our 65th edition tomorrow, Saturday, from 8am-12pm. 🌸🌼
The location is in our bio and the nearest landmark is Bandstand, and the nearest tree number is 3265.
We are in
@the_hindu
Metro Plus today. Thanks Praveen for writing about us. :)
Some edits for readers. We sit every Saturday from 9am-2pm, not 9.30am-2.30pm.
Our first International feature came a few days ago in
@SCMPNews
✍🏼 by
@anitaraokashi
. It was such a delight talking to her on her maiden visit to Cubbon Reads as an attendee. Thank you for sharing your experience and our journey through this piece:
On this bright day, the 40th Edition of CubbonReads was welcomed by the majestic trees of the park. Readers sought refuge in their cool shade, embarking on a lively weekend morning 🌤️. Hundreds gathered with vibrant mats, creating a reading haven amidst scattered petals🍂.
Cubbon Meets was houseful today. 🌸
We had twelve readers speak one-on-one with each other for 7 minutes each followed by 2 minutes of writing each other a letter based on the conversation. 🤩
It felt so much fun that most of us went for lunch together post the meet. Thank you!
For the 5th and the most recent Lodhi Reads held on 27th May, we had 24 readers come together to read in silence. Find us on Instagram to know more about our Saturday quiet reading hours at Lodhi Garden.
Imagine 40 people sitting together under the shade of trees, immersed in their books. That's how the sixth edition of Lodhi Reads looked like yesterday. Not just from Delhi, we had readers joining us from Gurgaon, Noida, and Ghaziabad as well.
Our play book is now open source. Now anyone can create a chapter without our handholding. Once you do that, ping us for a shout out and content guidelines.
The link to the step 1 is here:
A cozy gathering for the first ever edition of
@dehradunreads
that saw three readers show up at Gandhi Park on 18th June :)
We will be here every Sunday between 8am-11am. See you there!
Expecting better from the journalists reporting on
@cubbonreads
. Our curators are constantly being wrongly or selectively reported. Quotes are being twisted or changed to suit the story. Pictures from our Instagram are being used for prints without permission, credits or royalty.
Fed up with reporters loitering around in the garb of “journalism”. The way
@cubbonreads
got featured in
@TheHinduMag
last Sunday and
@BangaloreMirror
today showcases either misogyny, misattribution, plagiarism, or even 🤖 generated writing. Mistrust continues to widen.
Cubbon is a public space so we don't put restrictions. But it will be mindful of brands to not disrupt the silence with blatant promotions. Do sales post the reading hours, if you do want to. The best thing for a brand to do is to host silent reading sessions at their offices. 📖
Was disappointed to read
@cubbonreads
’ story on IG a few days ago about brands trying to hijack the event by promoting their products during reading hours. Why can’t people be respectful? Such trashy behaviour
Readers far away from Cubbon and Lalbagh and near Whitefield, we got you covered. Some of our readers started the silent reading community there.
It's a movement now. We are in 30+ locations worldwide. :)
Friends, Silence Lovers and Readers in Whitefield, we are excited to invite you to the very first edition of
@whitefieldreads
, a silent reading community where people come together to read silently from 9 am - 12:30 pm, every Saturday at the Inner Circle Municipal Park, Bengaluru
@CzarOptimus
Just show up, here’s the link:
Sit there silently and read. Come anytime between 8 am to noon on Saturdays, we take pics around 12 and then head out for lunch in smaller groups to talk about our reads or evening plans. ✨
Silent reading sessions are happening tomorrow, pan-India. Check out the following Instagram pages if you wish to join these reading groups. 📚
@juhureads
will read from 5pm to 7pm at Kaifi Azmi Park, Juhu on Saturday. ⏰️
🌳()
As it rained heavily across Delhi yesterday, we went remote for our 11th edition. Readers joined from their respective corners to read together. Some of them shared glimpses of it. Our stack from yesterday. We are aware many of the books that were read remain missing from it.
Many congratulations,
@whitefieldreads
. What a promising start! :)
Now we have six chapters in Bengaluru itself, 40 chapters worldwide. Let's take the reading movement everywhere. 🎉
In our very 1st edition, we were a beautiful family of 25+ silent readers at
#WhitefieldReads
. 📖
New friends tiptoed into the reading-zone and splayed their mats under the massive tamarind tree 🌳 before they got comfortably lost in their books. 📚
🌟The beauty of Cubbon Reads lies in its simplicity. There are no formalities, no memberships.
All you need to do: show up at the designated location (check
@cubbonreads
) on Saturdays between 9 AM & 2 PM, armed with your favorite books, a snack, and a cozy mat. 1/4
#UnboxingBLR
@lalbaghreads
had its first quiet reading community experience on 21st May - Sunday at Lalbagh, Namma Bengaluru! There were 23 attendees to bask on the serene ambiance, read and share the love of books!
🍀Every Sunday at Lalbagh, 9 AM - 12:30 PM
#LalbaghReads
#Bengaluru
The biggest turn out ever at the 1st edition. Go
@HyderabadReads
! ✨
Our silent reading chapters are now in 30+ cities across the world. We are adding 2 new chapters/day thanks to dozens of keen readers wanting to start in their cities DMing us. Let's make the world read!📖
Hyderabad reads, like a breeze. Our first-ever meet-up of
@hyderabadreads
saw 45+ cozy readers. Just behold their joy of having read their fav book on their mat, in KBR's lap.
#HyderabadReads
The eighteenth edition of
@cubbonreads
hit a half-century last Saturday. 53 attendees showed up in total, the highest attendance so far. :)
New chapters in Delhi () up, Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad coming up. The word is spreading, so are words. :)
Punekars, What are your plans for this Saturday?
Come join us for a silent reading session from 8 am to 11am at Kamla Nehru Park. Get a mat, snack & a book to read :)
#punereads
@CzarOptimus
Just show up, here’s the link:
Sit there silently and read. Come anytime between 8 am to noon on Saturdays, we take pics around 12 and then head out for lunch in smaller groups to talk about our reads or evening plans. ✨
Tech bros unable to finish their Atomic Habits, here's your redemption. 🙈
@hsrreads
every Saturday, 8am-11am, in 22A Main Tree Park, HSR. We just had our first session on Saturday and had 35 attendees. So happy to spot many fiction readers.
The 1st edition of HSR Reads was a big-small family of 35 readers this weekend.
Readers found their abodes under a tree, canopy and even on a tree trunk.
Thanks to those who joined! See you again next Saturday - 8 to 11 am.
@GoofySufi
@lalbaghreads
We're a silent reading community, not a book club. What anyone is reading is their business, not ours. People come to silently read together & then they leave. There's no discussion, which is why it is open and welcoming to readers from all stages–beginners to elites. See you. :)
Friends, Silence Lovers and Readers in HSR,
We are excited to invite you to the very first edition of
@hsrreads
, a silent reading community where people come together to read silently from 8 am - 11 am every Saturday at HSR 22A Main Tree Park, Bengaluru -