In its fifth year, the JCB Prize for Literature chose Kolkata for the first time to announce its shortlist on October 21 at Glenburn Penthouse. The prize that celebrates contemporary literature shortlisted five Indian fiction reads in its translated form. While Urdu, Hindi and Nepali made their debut in the list, Malayalam and Bengali too were part of the list.
Talking about the selection, jury chair AS Panneerselvan said, “We did not look at the languages at all, what we assessed is the resonance that the authors created; we were looking at the cadences that these authors were creating. It’s great to know that what we finalised was not just in one language but multiple, including Hindi, Nepali and Urdu, that made it to the list for the first time.”
Post the announcement, (l-r) actor Jayant Kripalani, author Sandip Roy and artist Paramita Saha read selected excerpts of the shortlisted titles that gave a sneak peek into the writing style of the authors and of the stories that wooed the jury.
The shortlist includes Booker prize winner Geetanjali Shree’s Tomb of Sand translated from Hindi by Daisy Rockwell; Manoranjan Byapari’s Imaan translated from Bengali by Arunava Sinha; Khalid Jawed’s The Paradise of Food translated from Urdu by Baran Farooqi; Sheela Tomy’s Valli translated from Malayalam by Jayasree Kalathil and Chuden Kabimo’s Song of the Soil translated from Nepali by Ajit Baral.
The winner of the JCB Prize for Literature will be announced next month and it carries a prize of Rs 25 lakh.