With only three days left before the Amar Ekushey Book Fair wraps up, visitors are returning to the fairgrounds to pick up their favourite titles.
Publishers, though faced with a shorter run this year, are drawing renewed hope for stronger sales in the final stretch.
Across the Bangla Academy and Suhrawardy Udyan premises, a subtle sense of farewell has begun to settle over the fair.
As the annual cultural event nears its end, readers are increasingly visiting stalls to browse new releases and collect books before the fair closes.
Publishers and booksellers say overall attendance has been comparatively lower this year than in previous editions.
However, they remain hopeful that visitor numbers and sales will improve during the final days.
A visit to the fair on Thursday afternoon showed a noticeable increase in readers at several publishing stalls compared with previous days.
Many visitors were seen exploring newly published titles, while others were buying books by their favourite authors.
Activity was particularly visible from late afternoon into the evening.
Shahin Shikdar, manager of Mowla Brothers, said sales have begun to improve.
“Sales today are slightly better than on previous days,” he said.
“Earlier, many people came mainly to visit the fair. Out of 100 visitors, perhaps only 20 would buy books. Now if 100 people come, around 80 are purchasing books. We expect sales to increase further as the fair approaches its final days.”
Ashraf Hossain Simanta, a seller at Muktodhara Publishing House, said Ramadan has affected overall attendance, but the visitors who are coming appear more interested in buying books.
“The number of visitors has been lower because of Ramadan,” he said.
“But sales are improving. Those who are coming now seem to be coming specifically to buy books.”
Publishers also noted a shift in purchasing patterns as the fair draws to a close.
Moin Faruk, publisher of Chondrobindu Publications, said many visitors who initially came only to explore the fair are now returning to purchase books.
“At the beginning of the fair, many people came just to look around, and purchases were comparatively lower,” he said.
“Now, toward the end, many visitors are buying several books at once. We are hopeful sales will increase further in the remaining days.”
Visitors shared similar sentiments.
Habib, who visited the fair on Thursday, said he had come specifically to buy books before the event ends.
“I couldn’t come earlier due to my busy schedule, so I came now to buy some books before the fair closes,” he said.
“I have discovered several new titles here. Although the crowd is smaller, it seems most people are here to buy books.”
Another visitor, an engineer who attended the fair with his family, said the annual book fair remains an important cultural outing.
“The book fair is like a family tradition for us,” he said.
“We want our children to develop a love for books, so we brought them here and bought a few books for them.”
Despite the quieter atmosphere caused partly by Ramadan, the fairgrounds continue to regain vibrancy each afternoon and evening as readers arrive.
Publishers and organizers remain optimistic that the closing days will bring a final surge in visitors and book sales before the Amar Ekushey Book Fair draws to a close.