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Business Standard
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Business Standard
Who is Banu Mushtaq, first Kannada author to win International Booker?
Banu Mushtaq, a 77-year-old author, lawyer, activist and fearless voice for women and the marginalised, has made literary history. She became the first Kannada writer to win the International Booker Prize, sharing the prestigious honour with her translator Deepa Bhasthi for the short story collection Heart Lamp. The award, which includes a £50,000 prize, marks a series of firsts—the first time a Kannada work has received the accolade and the first short story collection to win the International Booker. 'This feels like a thousand fireflies lighting a single sky – brief, brilliant and utterly collective,' Mushtaq said. 'I accept this great honour not as an individual but as a voice raised in chorus with so many others.' What is Banu Mushtaq's Heart Lamp and why it won the Booker Prize Published in English for the first time, Heart Lamp is a collection of 12 stories written between 1990 and 2023. It explores the everyday lives and struggles of Muslim women in Karnataka, critiquing how religion, politics and social norms impose suffering and silence. 'My stories are about women—how religion, society and politics demand unquestioning obedience from them, and in doing so, inflict inhumane cruelty upon them,' Mushtaq told The Booker Prize. The judges praised Heart Lamp for its 'immense emotional and moral weight' and for giving voice to women on the margins. How Banu Mushtaq's upbringing shaped her literary voice Mushtaq's literary journey began in middle school, and her first story was published at age 26 in Prajamata, a Kannada magazine. Though Urdu was her first language, her progressive father enrolled her in a convent school. Kannada became her chosen language of resistance. In interviews with Vogue and The Week, she described being pushed into domesticity after her love marriage, battling postpartum depression, and surviving a suicide attempt. 'Once, in a fit of despair, I poured white petrol on myself… intending to set myself on fire,' she said. Her husband intervened and begged her not to abandon their child. That moment, she said, brought her back from the brink. Banu Mushtaq: A fearless activist beyond the literary world Mushtaq has long been an outspoken advocate for women's rights and social justice. She served as a journalist for over a decade and held two terms on the Hassan City municipal council. Her activism has drawn threats and violence—including a knife attack and a fatwa after she supported women's right to pray in mosques. Her writing has been shaped by Karnataka's progressive movements in the 1970s and 1980s, including the Dalit, environmental, and women's rights struggles. 'The pain, suffering and helpless lives of these women create a deep emotional response within me, compelling me to write,' she said. Other works by Banu Mushtaq and her literary recognition In addition to Heart Lamp, Banu Mushtaq has authored: Six short story collections One novel One essay collection One poetry collection Notable titles include Haseena Matthu Ithara Kathegalu (2013) and Hennu Haddina Swayamvara (2023). She has received the Karnataka Sahitya Academy Award and the Daana Chintamani Attimabbe Award. Her work has been translated into Urdu, Hindi, Tamil and Malayalam, but Heart Lamp is her first full-length translation into English. Her short story Kari Nagaragalu was adapted into the National Award-winning film Hasina (2004), directed by Girish Kasaravalli. Who is Deepa Bhasthi, the translator of Heart Lamp? Deepa Bhasthi is a writer and translator based in Karnataka's Kodagu. According to the Booker Prize Foundation, she works across literature, art, and cultural research. Her translation of Heart Lamp is the first full-length English translation of Banu Mushtaq's work. The Booker Prize profile states that she is currently based in India and works on a range of cultural and literary projects.
India.com
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- India.com
Meet Banu Mushtaq: First Kannada Author To Win International Booker Prize 2025 For ‘Heart Lamp'
In a historic moment for Indian literature, 77-year-old Kannada writer, lawyer, and activist Banu Mushtaq has won the International Booker Prize for her short story collection Heart Lamp. She is the first Kannada author to receive this prestigious award. The book includes 12 stories that highlight the daily lives and challenges of Muslim women in Karnataka over a period of 30 years, from 1990 to 2023. Deepa Bhasthi, who translated the collection into English, also received the International Booker Prize along with Banu Mushtaq. With this win, Mushtaq becomes part of a distinguished group of Indian authors who have received the prestigious award since it began in 1969. This list includes V.S. Naipaul, Salman Rushdie, Arundhati Roy, Kiran Desai, Aravind Adiga, and Geetanjali Shree. Who is Banu Mustaq? Banu Mushtaq, who comes from Hassan in Karnataka, wrote her first short story when she was in middle school. She gained attention in the literary world when her first story was published at the age of 26 in the popular Kannada magazine Prajamata. According to her profile on The Booker Prize website, she has written six collections of short stories, a novel, a collection of essays, and a book of poetry. In an interview with the Booker Prize Foundation, Mushtaq shared that her inspiration came from the Dalit movement, farmers' movement, language movement, women's struggles, and environmental activism in the 1970s, all of which she experienced while growing up in Karnataka. Banu Mustaq and her writings In Heart Lamp, the female characters reflect a strong spirit of resistance and resilience. Mushtaq later worked as a reporter for a well-known local tabloid and was involved with the Bandaya movement, which focused on fighting social and economic injustices through literature and activism. After a decade in journalism, she left the field and became a lawyer to support her family. Over her long and distinguished career, she has published a large body of work, including six short story collections, a novel, and an essay collection. However, her sharp and powerful writing has also made her a target of hatred. Besides her award-winning work, she has written six short story collections, a novel, an essay collection, and a poetry collection. She has received recognition from the Karnataka Sahitya Academy and the Daana Chintamani Attimabbe awards for her contributions. Additionally, her first five short stories were published together in a single volume titled Haseena Matthu Ithara Kathegalu in 2013, and in 2023, another collection called Hennu Haddina Swayamvara was released.
Hindustan Times
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Who is Banu Mushtaq? Indian author wins International Booker Prize
Banu Mushtaq, a writer who talks about women's lives, caste, power and oppression, has been awarded the International Booker Prize along with her translator Deepa Bhasthi for her book 'Heart Lamp'. Karnataka-based Banu Mushtaq, 77, is the first Kannada author to win the annual Booker Prize given to the best English-translated fiction. Talking about this breathtaking moment, Mushtaq said, 'This feels like a thousand fireflies lighting a single sky – brief, brilliant and utterly collective.' Moreover, this is the second Indian book to win this international honour after Geetanjali Shree and translator Daisy Rockwell's Tomb of Sand (Ret Samadhi) in 2022. Apart from her life as an author Mushtaq is also known for her advocacy of women's rights and her legal work questioning discrimination. Mushtaq says her stories reflect how religion, society and politics demand unquestioning obedience from women and in the process, inflict cruelty upon them. In her personal life as well, she fought the patriarchal norm and defied the social expectations by marrying a man of her choice. Her journey of writing began in middle school when she wrote her first short story. Though she started writing early on, it caught attention when her first story was published in the popular Kannada magazine Prajamata at the age of 26. Born in a large Muslim family she received enormous support from her father even against the authoritative nature of her school and when she fought against it. Mushtaq's brilliant writing stems from the progressive movements in Karnataka, which inspired her works. She travelled across states and involved herself in the Bandaya Sahitya movement, a progressive protest that challenged cast and class oppression. Her engagement with the lives of the people who struggled gave her the strength to write. Other than this award winning work, she is the author of six short story collections, a novel, an essay collection and a poetry collection. For her work she has been recognised by the Karnataka Sahitya Academy and the Daana Chintamani Attimabbe awards. Further, her first five short stories have been compiled in one consolidated volume in 2013 called Haseena Matthu Ithara Kathegalu, and in 2023, a compilation called Hennu Haddina Swayamvara (2023).
