Was ‘500 pc' sure I will win Booker Prize: Banu Mushtaq

Hans India

30-05-2025

Bengaluru: Booker Prize winner Banu Mushtaq said on Wednesday that she believed she would win the prize '500 per cent' and she wrote the speech three days ahead of the award ceremony. Mushtaq was speaking at a felicitation event organised by the Karnataka Union of Working Journalists in Bengaluru.
'Initially, I did not think much of it, but then I saw the reactions of people in social media after I was longlisted. Only then I realised the importance of the Booker Prize. So, when my family was sleeping in the night, I sat and wrote the speech that I ended up giving after I won,' said Mushtaq.
She said she actually practiced the speech every day from then on, picturing herself holding the Booker Prize. She also recalled how, when her publisher tried to temper her expectations by saying that never in the history of the Booker Prize, a short story collection has won the prize, Mushtaq told the publisher, 'Why won't you believe that we might win? I believe 500 per cent.'
She also talked about how people had absolutely no clue about the Kannada language and ended up pronouncing it 'Canada'. 'I made them repeat Kan-na-da,' added Mushtaq. Mushtaq, who was invited to speak at a panel at the Hay Festival 2025 in Wales on May 24 along with Prize director Gaby Wood and judge Anton Hur, said she was impressed with the 'book culture' there.
'The four-hour journey from London itself was so beautiful and reminded me so much of our Sakleshpura and Kodagu (hill stations in Karnataka) or even Kerala. But once there, I realised that the village might be small but it is a mecca for writers and readers. Nearly 25,000 people visit every day and buy books from the 40-odd small bookshops there during the 11 days of the festival,' said Mushtaq.
She also said she was impressed by the crowd that stood in line for an autographed 'Heart Lamp' at the festival. 'Think nearly 300 people were there. I signed all books in Kannada,' she added. She said, as per her calculations, she believes her English publisher did Rs 6 crore business after the win. 'My book is also getting translated in 35 global languages and 12 Indian languages,' she added.
Mushtaq said after winning, her world, too, really opened up. She is being invited all around the world. 'On June 16, I will go to London. In August, I will visit the Edinburgh Festival. Till next August my schedule is booked. I will be visiting Australia, New York and Bali...,' said the Kannada writer.
Noting that she could not wear the Mysore silk saree -- that she deliberately chose to represent Karnataka -- on the winning night because her suitcase was lost in transit, Mushtaq said there's always a next time. She said she finally got her daughter, who was joining her from Bahrain, to bring the saree she wore.
'Guess, I have to win another Booker Prize so that the pending wish of wearing a Mysore silk saree for the Booker Prize reception will come true,' said the award winning writer, as cheers erupted from the crowd.