ASSORTED LINE-UP: Visitors take a look at the variety available at the Bible exhibition in Chennai.

CHENNAI: Orange and pink Bibles, ones with hand embossed le ather, ones for women, brides, couples ... this year's Bible exhibition offers a trendy selection from which one can read the `Word of God'.

The exhibition, which features about 500 varieties of Bibles, is on till June 10 at the Memorial Hall, Park Town. Organised by the Bible Society of India and The Book Room, it offers discounts ranging from 10 to 70 per cent.

The Bishop of Coimbatore diocese Dorai inaugurated it on Wednesday.

From the King James version to the American Standard to the New Living Translation, all English versions of the book are available.

Last year saw the revival of the King James Version (KJV), said W.R. Paulraj, director (marketing), Bible Society of India. The New International Version or NIV was the most popular earlier.

To compete with this, publishing houses started churning out other versions. With all the new versions floating around, many churches switched to what is considered the oldest version of the Bible — the KJV, he said.

The Society has translated the Bible to 27 languages, and the best selling was in Telugu, said Mr. Paulraj. Tamil came second. Previously, the Malayalam translation was on top of the sales. But its popularity has fallen due to migration or English education, among other reasons, said Mr. Paulraj. Apart from a range of children's Bibles and illustrated stories from the book, there are also animated classics on VCD about biblical characters such as Rachel, Joseph and Jesus. A new section to the collection is a series of theological books on topics, including faith and the anti-Christ.

Prices range from Rs.20 to Rs.3,500. One of the most expensisve editions is a gilt-edged waterproof Bible.

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