Indian writer Banu Mushtaq and translator Deepa Bhasthi have won the prestigious International Booker Prize for their literary collaboration Heart Lamp, a powerful anthology of 12 short stories that delve into the lives of women in southern India.
The announcement was made at a ceremony held at London’s Tate Modern, with author Max Porter, who chaired the five-member jury panel, declaring the win. This marks the first time the award has gone to a short story collection, a milestone in the prize’s history.
Originally written in Kannada, a language spoken by nearly 65 million people in India, the stories span over three decades—from 1990 to 2023—and reflect the complex realities of gender, caste, religion, and power structures in Indian society. The collection was curated and translated by Bhasthi, who aimed to maintain the multilingual fabric of southern India in her English rendition.
In his remarks, Porter hailed the work as “radical,” praising the jury’s growing appreciation for the stories throughout the judging process. “These beautiful, busy, life-affirming stories rise from Kannada, interspersed with the extraordinary socio-political richness of other languages and dialects,” he said. “It speaks of women’s lives, reproductive rights, faith, caste, power, and oppression.”
With this win, Bhasthi becomes the first Indian translator and ninth woman translator to receive the prize since its relaunch in 2016. Mushtaq is now the sixth female author to be honored with the International Booker in its current form.
