IN THE AFTERGLOW

Banu Mushtaq has embarked on an ambitious post-Booker journey—illuminating the world with Kannada stories

- PRATHIMA NANDAKUMAR

In a historic first, 77-year-old Kannada writer, journalist, activist and lawyer Banu Mushtaq won the 2025 International Booker Prize for her short story collection Heart Lamp—a translation of 12 powerful stories rooted in the lived realities of marginalised women. This was the first time the Booker had been awarded to a collection of short stories rather than a novel, and the first time a Kannada work had not only made the shortlist but clinched the prestigious prize.

Born in Hassan, Karnataka, into a Muslim family, Banu's early life bore the mark of struggle and resilience. At eight, she was shifted to a Kanna-da-medium convent school in Shivamogga after failing to grasp Urdu. The nuns admitted her to grade 1, doubtful whether she would keep pace. Within six months, she proved them wrong, mastering Kannada so quickly that she received double promotions until she caught up with her peers in grade 4.

This persistence shaped her journey—becoming a lawyer, marrying her college senior Mohiyuddin Mushtaq, working as a journalist under the legendary editor P. Lankesh, and immersing herself in the progressive Bandaya Sahitya movement. Her activism brought her close to marginalised women, while her legal practice offered raw insight into injustice—insights that germinated into fiercely honest fiction.

As she brought home the Booker, the euphoria was palpable in Bengaluru. On May 28, Banu got a grand welcome at Kempegowda International Airport. Drummers performing Dollu Kunita, artists enacting Yakshagana, shawls, flowers and flashing cameras greeted her. But even before TV channels could swarm her, two women journalists whisked her away to Gandhi Bhavan for her first felicitation back home—with a quick stop for steaming idlis and sambhar along the way.

At Gandhi Bhavan, Banu was among her own—writers, academics, activists, filmmakers and fans. With wit and warmth, she recounted her journey from small-town Hassan to the global literary stage.