Rewards and restructuring that the literary world needs

New Indian Express

6 days ago

Faint rumours that the JCB Prize For Literature — which paid Rs 25 lakhs to the winner(s), and was awarded for Indian novels originally in English or translated into the same — was quietly shutting down began circulating just a little over a year ago. Last month, a number of articles released, almost simultaneously, concluded that this was true. We — the reading, writing public — had sort of been ghosted by the country's most lucrative literary honour, which at its inception had revived in the field a sense of glamour not seen in a long time, along with solid, substantial rewards beyond the usual ineffable aura of prestige.
What does patronage for the arts mean in a time of reduced appreciation of the arts? No one can argue in good faith that arts and culture — with the exception of arts and culture that comply with state-backed religiosity — are thriving in India, whether in terms of output or outcomes thereof. In this climate, in pragmatic terms, the monetary rewards associated with certain prizes can indeed be life-changing. Rs 25 lakhs may not be enough to retire with — but it makes permissible a wide range of choices, from taking an extended sabbatical from a day job to focus exclusively on research or creation, to paying off debts, to serious investment. Even for a middle-class writer, it can be a precious ticket into, at minimum, short-term financial stability. For a working-class writer, it can be even more impactful.