Bangladeshi fair highlights love of books in digital era

With less than a week left until the end of Bangladesh's largest month-long annual book fair, thousands of people from all age groups are still flocking daily to the event. The overwhelming popularity of the fair suggests that people here still have a deep love for books - with paper, ink and covers - rather than their modern-day digital counterparts.

Many of those attending the fair say that they feel a profound sense of happiness and nostalgia as they smell a newly printed book. Some described it as the "best smell in the world".

The Amar Ekushey Boi Mela, which translates to Immortal 21st Book Fair, has been on since Feb 1 at Dhaka's Bangla Academy premises and its adjacent Suhrawardy Udyan (garden), in commemoration of the martyrs who sacrificed their lives to protect the dignity of their mother tongue on Feb 21, 1952.