New prize richer than Asian Booker

You know the publishing industry has arrived when it boasts a lucrative, international prize. A new prize for South Asian Literature, instituted in January this year, is open for entries. The prize money is not a sum to sneeze at: $50,000. The reward is considerably bigger than what the Man Asia Literary Prize (or Asian Booker) offers: $30,000.

The award will “recognize writers of any ethnicity writing about South Asia and its diaspora”. You need not belong to South Asia, only write on it. “The prize has porous literary borders,” observes Namita Gokhale, director of the Jaipur Literature Festival, “the world we are living in is the world of the internet. You shouldn’t need a passport to write a book, to win a prize.”

Its global scope is evident from the advisory board that includes Lord Meghnad Desai, journalist Tina Brown, Michael Worton of University College, London, writer Nayantara Sehgal, writer-publisher Urvashi Butalia, publisher-turned-literary agent David Godwin and journalist MJ Akbar. They will select the five-member jury to be in place by end April, with April 24 as last date for entries. Named DSC Prize for South Asian Literature, the prize is being sponsored by construction company DSC Limited, who also fund the Lit Fest.

Full report here Times of India