Kannada Author Banu Mushtaq’s ‘Heart Lamp’ On International Booker Shortlist

Photo: Booker Prize

India-West News Desk

NEW DELHI – Heart Lamp: Selected Stories, a searing collection by Kannada writer Banu Mushtaq and translated into English by Deepa Bhasthi, has been shortlisted for the 2025 International Booker Prize.

It marks only the second time a work from India has made it to the prestigious shortlist, following Geetanjali Shree’s Tomb of Sand, translated from Hindi by Daisy Rockwell, which won in 2022.

Published in India by Penguin Random House India and in the UK by And Other Stories in April 2025, Heart Lamp stands out as the only short story collection among five novels competing for the prize this year. Notably, it’s the first time all six shortlisted titles have been released by independent publishers, with women making up the majority—nine out of twelve—of the authors and translators nominated.

Mushtaq, known for her unflinching portrayals of women’s lives, said her stories are inspired by real-life experiences and observations. “My stories are about women – how religion, society, and politics demand unquestioning obedience from them, and in doing so, inflict inhumane cruelty upon them, turning them into mere subordinates,” she told Booker Prize. The stories in Heart Lamp were drawn from around 50 works across six of her collections published since 1990.

Mushtaq writes instinctively, often completing a piece in just two drafts. “I do not engage in extensive research; my heart itself is my field of study,” she explained. “The daily incidents reported in media and the personal experiences I have endured have been my inspiration. The more intensely the incidence affects me, the more deeply and emotionally I write.”

This year’s shortlist was selected from a longlist of 13 titles by a jury chaired by author Max Porter, alongside poet and photographer Caleb Femi, writer and publishing director Sana Goyal, author-translator Anton Hur, and singer-songwriter Beth Orton. Of the six finalists, only one book exceeds 200 pages, and three are debut English-language publications.

In its citation, the jury praised Heart Lamp for its fearless exploration of systemic oppression. “These stories speak truth to power and slice through the fault lines of caste, class, and religion widespread in contemporary society, exposing the rot within: corruption, oppression, injustice, violence,” they noted. The translation was also lauded for its craftsmanship: “The tight-gauged texture of the intricate translation creates a most invigorating reading experience, rare nowadays in English-language fiction.”

The International Booker Prize awards a total of £50,000, shared equally between author and translator, with each shortlisted pair also receiving £2,500. The winner will be announced at a ceremony at London’s Tate Modern on May 20.

Joining Heart Lamp on this year’s shortlist are:

• A Leopard-Skin Hat by Anne Serre, translated from the French by Mark Hutchinson (New Directions Publishing)
• On the Calculation of Volume by Solvej Balle, translated from the Dutch by Barbara J. Haveland (Faber and Faber)
• Perfection by Vincenzo Latronico, translated from the Italian by Sophie Hughes (Fitzcarraldo Editions)
• Small Boat by Vincent Delecroix, translated from the French by Helen Stevenson (Peepal Tree Press)
• Under the Eye of the Big Bird by Hiromi Kawakami, translated from the Japanese by Asa Yoneda (Granta Books)