India, Dec. 10 -- The city transformed into one massive reading hall on Tuesday as thousands of Punekars pressed pause on their routines to grab a book and read it for an hour in response to the 'Silence. Pune is Reading' campaign, organised as a prelude to the upcoming Pune Book Festival 2025 in a bid to instil in people the habit of reading.

The campaign saw overwhelming participation from readers across age groups, workplaces and public spaces with organisers recording more than 135,000 photograph uploads by 5 pm even as the estimated total number of participants in the physical reading session crossed 7.5 lakh, in what is expected to create a Guinness World Record.

The reading activity was held between 11 am and 12 noon. During this...