NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
Heart Lamp, a collection of 12 short stories by Indian author Banu Mushtaq, translated from Kannada by Deepa Bhasthi, has won the 2025 International Booker Prize. This marks the first time a work originally written in Kannada and the first short story collection have received this prestigious award.
The £50,000 prize, shared equally between Mushtaq and Bhasthi, was announced at a ceremony held at London’s Tate Modern. Chair of the judges, Max Porter, praised the book as “something genuinely new for English readers,” highlighting its exploration of women’s lives, reproductive rights, faith, caste, power, and oppression.
Spanning over three decades, the stories in Heart Lamp delve into the experiences of Muslim and Dalit women in southern India, addressing themes such as caste, class, and religious oppression. Mushtaq, a lawyer and advocate for women’s rights, draws from her roots in the Bandaya Sahitya literary movement to portray everyday life in Karnataka.
Translator Deepa Bhasthi, based in Kodagu, southern India, emphasized the importance of preserving the cultural richness of the Kannada language in her translation. She described her approach as “translating with an accent,” aiming to authentically convey cultural context without exoticism.
Published by Sheffield-based And Other Stories, Heart Lamp‘s recognition underscores the evolving landscape of translated fiction and the increasing appreciation for diverse voices in global literature.
This historic win not only celebrates the literary prowess of Mushtaq and Bhasthi but also shines a spotlight on Kannada literature, encouraging greater interest and investment in translations from regional Indian languages.
