Indian writer, lawyer, and activist Banu Mushtaq has won the International Booker Prize for her short story collection “Heart Lamp”, making her the first author writing in Kannada to receive the prestigious literary honor. The award was announced on Tuesday (May 20) at a ceremony held at the Tate Modern gallery in London.
The 77-year-old author, known for her work on women’s rights and legal activism in Karnataka, shares the £50,000 ($67,000) prize equally with translator Deepa Vasti, who rendered the stories into English and helped select the final collection.
Heart Lamp, a compilation of 12 short stories published between 1990 and 2023, explores daily life within South India’s Muslim community, with a particular focus on women and adolescents. The collection has been widely praised for its sharp critique of patriarchy, casteism, and religious conservatism, along with its dry humor, colloquial narrative style, and vivid portraits of resilience and survival.
In her acceptance speech, Mushtaq remarked, “This moment is like thousands of fireflies shining together across the sky… I accept this honor not as an individual, but as a collective voice.”
The jury, led by author Max Porter, called the book “a revolutionary translation,” noting its ability to expand the boundaries of language and translation. “It challenges and reshapes our understanding of what English can be,” Porter added.
Mushtaq emphasized that her stories center around women—highlighting how religion, society, and politics impose loyalty and cruelty upon them, and how girls are often raised to remain subordinate. Her award not only celebrates Kannada literature on the global stage but also underscores the growing recognition of regional voices and gendered narratives in world literature.
