London, May 21 -- In a momentous literary breakthrough, Indian writer, lawyer and activist Banu Mustaq has become the first author writing in Kannada to win the prestigious International Booker Prize for her powerful short story anthology 'Heart Lamp'.
The anthology, spanning 12 stories written between 1990 and 2023, was translated into English by Deepa Bhasthi, who also became the first Indian translator to win the coveted literary award.
"This book was born from the belief that no story is ever small; that in the tapestry of human experience, every thread holds the weight of the whole," Mustaq declared in her acceptance speech.
"In a world that often tries to divide us, literature remains one of the last sacred spaces where we can live ...