For migrants, having authority over narratives of our homeland is not easy

VV Ganeshananthan, an American writer and journalist of Sri Lankan descent, won the Women's Prize for Fiction last year for her book Brotherless Night, which revolves around a young woman in civil war-torn Sri Lanka who fiercely wants to pursue her dreams of being a doctor as her brothers get swept in the violence. In conversation with Garima Sadhwani, the author, who was at the Jaipur Literature Festival 2025, talks about the book, being a diaspora writer, and more. Edited excerpts:

- VV Ganeshananthan, in conversation with Garima Sadhwani, the author, who was at the Jaipur Literature Festival 2023. Edited excerpts:

the real world, as you've done in your books, how difficult is it to balance facts, fiction, and feelings? My novel (Brotherless Night) is in the first-person voice of a fictional Tamil woman, a character I invented, and who spoke to me so clearly, she made the book necessary. Everything in the novel is filtered through the window of her character. And balance is part of her character and motivation, but so is the intensity of feeling, because she's trying to be honest. It seems to me like a good story often has the kind of balance you're describing built right into its structure and nature.

After your 2024 Women's Prize for Fiction win, you said 'writing is always political'. Why do you think so?