Raising the profile of South Asian writers since 2007
by Nilopar Uddin A damp evening in Manchester’s Dean Street, and Waterstones is brimming with eager faces. Speaking to the women sitting around me, I realise that Mohsin Hamid is something of a rockstar literati; this room is packed with fans who exhibit the effervescent excitement of groupies. Hamid, whose writings has been variously described …
Firstly *breathe*. In all the years (almost 10) I’ve been doing this, I’ve never been more excited to do a books roundup or a single post. In terms of fiction, 2017 is filled with nothing short of genius. I’m already expecting my own writing to fall by the wayside in honour of the books published …
An Indian poet has been named the winner of a major literary prize. Sohini Basak, of Barrackpore, has been named the winner of the 2016 Beverly Series for her debut collection of poetry, We Live in the Newness of Small Differences. The 2016 Beverley Series was open to original manuscripts in any genre by any …
A new award celebrating the best book by a writer of colour has announced its longlist. The Jhalak Prize for Book of the Year by a Writer of Colour seeks to champion books by British and British resident BAME writers with the overall winner presented with a prize of £1,000. The inaugural longlist offers an …
by Tehseen Baweja How do you help somebody break free from the shackles of orthodoxy and conformity? This is a very real and deep-rooted problem in today’s Pakistani society with no simple answer. But one thing that is bound to help is encouraging those who dare to think outside the box, and The Salam Award …
Here be Monsters! They lurk and crawl and fly in the shadows of our mind. We know them from ancient legends and tales whispered by the campfire. They hide under the dark bridge, in the deep woods or out on the great plains, in the drizzling rain forest or out on the foggy moor, beneath …
Here be Monsters! They lurk and crawl and fly in the shadows of our mind. We know them from ancient legends and tales whispered by the campfire. They hide under the dark bridge, in the deep woods or out on the great plains, in the drizzling rain forest or out on the foggy moor, beneath …
Zafar Anjum “This year, I was disappointed with fiction. Whatever few novels I read, they did not move me enough, except for Isa Kamari’s two novels, Tweet (that I published under Kitaab) and Kiswah, which I read in manuscript (to be published in English translation in 2017). For non-fiction, I immensely enjoyed re-visiting two of Amitav Ghosh’s works, …
Tell us more about your journey as a poet? When did you start writing poetry and when did you start performing? I think the journey probably started before I knew it did – poetry was always in my house, and in our car through the old desi tunes my parents listened to. On top of …
Nikesh Shukla is one of the most exciting voices of our time. I remember when I interviewed many years ago. He was just figuring out who he was as an artist and I was somewhat in awe of his courage even then. I’ve interviewed him several times since and he’s one of the loveliest authors I’ve …