Anime India Convention Comes to Kolkata in February 2026
Anime India, one of the country’s dedicated anime conventions, is heading to Kolkata for its next event in February 2026. The announcement came via the convention’s Instagram account. The most recent edition of the event took place from August 22 through August 24 at NESCO BEC in Mumbai.
The Mumbai edition welcomed a strong lineup of guests. Director Tetsuro Araki, known for Death Note, Attack on Titan, and Guilty Crown, attended as the flagship guest. Voice actor Tsunko, known for D4DJ First Mix and D4DJ All Mix, joined him, as did Hideo Katsumata, president of Avex Pictures, and DJ Tōko Nakamura. Hikari Dobashi attended as an exhibitor representing TV Tokyo. The event also served as the venue for the Asian premiere of the second season of Let This Grieving Soul Retire! and included a screening of the first episode of the second season of Dandadan.
Araki and Katsumata each took part in panels, meet-and-greet sessions with VIP ticket holders, and Q&A sessions open to the wider audience. The centerpiece presentation on August 24 focused on two of Araki’s most celebrated works: Attack on Titan and Death Note. Araki joined a live episode commentary session covering “Season 1 Episode 7: Small Blade” and “Season 3 Episode 17: Hero” from Attack on Titan. A quiz competition called “The Great Indian Anime Showdown” took place on August 23 and was themed around Araki’s broader body of work.
Beyond the official programming, the event featured DJ sets, a film festival, cosplay showcase, and fighting game competitions. Fan-led panels covered a wide range of topics including Yuri!!! on Ice, Neon Genesis Evangelion, the Indian fighting games community, and a look at the Indian anime fandom more broadly.
My take: Anime India moving from Mumbai to Kolkata for its next edition is a great sign that the convention is looking to reach a wider audience across the country. The lineup of guests for the Mumbai event was genuinely impressive and it will be exciting to see what Kolkata brings.
