Raising the profile of South Asian writers since 2007
by Kavita A. Jindal Glass Scissors is a debut poetry book with a purpose, and although the purpose is ‘reflection’, in both senses of the word, the poems it offers are political, confessional, tense and temperamental. Bobby Nayyar as a poet is strikingly frank about himself, his pain and his desires. This acutely personal and …
Shahrukh Husain’s latest novel, A Restless Wind offers a fictional account of modern Indian maharajas – the royals who lost their power when the nation gained Independence in 1947. This is an intriguing story of London-based barrister, Zara Hamilton who travels home to Trivikrampur after a decade, at the request of her Aunt. Deeply troubled, …
What inspired you to write, A Restless Wind? Where did the story come from? The story had been gestating since I was a teenager fascinated by the family events of a close relative, the Sufism, a certain annual festival held in the grounds of the house that I’ve renamed Qila. That house and its backyard …
What came first the elephant or Inspector Chopra? You could say Ganesha, the baby elephant in the series, gatecrashed the party. After living in India for 10 years I wanted to write a novel that took readers on a journey to the heart of the subcontinent – and I wanted the lead character, Inspector Chopra, …
Where did the inspiration for Sofia Khan is Not Obliged come from? It was a combination of the absurdity of the Muslim dating scene, my love of Bridget Jones and the fact that there aren’t enough Muslim heroines in literature. The dating book thread actually came from an old colleague at work, and the editorial …
Q. You’ve had a great year. Congratulations! Did it feel good from a writing perspective, or was it distracting? It felt good. My work got into the hands of more readers than it would have done otherwise – that’s a wonderful feeling. But, it’s true: I’ve written nary (a regional word for ‘not’) a word …
AA Dhand When Ali met Honour is a refreshing look into a seldom explored genre and brilliantly written by two debuts authors. Ali is a British Asian who is involved with Honour, a middle-class English girl. The co-writers, Dimmi Khan and Antsey Spraggan write from the points of view of Ali and Honour respectfully. The book …
As someone who once sat in front of an editor and pitched an ‘Asian Bridget Jones saves publishing industry’* feature idea I was thrilled to hear about the publication of Ayisha Malik’s debut novel, Sofia Khan’s Not Obliged. Was my wishful thinking finally coming true? Could this be a thing? In Sofia Khan we find a …
Women Who Write with Elves is a group of nine writers who met through the Open University. Scattered from Scotland to Switzerland, we keep in touch via an online forum. Once a year we meet for a creative writing break which is stimulating, educational and far from the relaxing holiday some of us hope …
Small Hands by Mona Arshi This debut collection is small but perfectly formed. The poems are diverse, each deeply personal which offer insight into the poet’s world – her culture, her family life, the loss of a brother which propel to keep reading. Expect to be inspired, this one left me self-reflecting and wondering. wet …