The prize includes a cash prize of ₹25 lakh for the author and ₹10 lakh for the translator
Author Perumal Murugan won the JCB Literature Prize for his book Firebird on Saturday. Translated from Tamil by Janani Kannan, and originally published as Aalanda Patchithe book explores the futile human desire for stability.
The winner of the JCB Literature Prize will receive a cash prize of ₹25 lakh, and the translator ₹10 lakhs.
“In FirebirdPerumal Murugan takes a universal story of lives connected to land and tells it with astonishing particularity. Janani Kannan’s translation conveys in English not just the rhythms of Tamil, but of an entire way of being,” said Srinath Perur, head of the jury.
The jury also included Lounge columnist Somak Ghoshal, playwright Mahesh Dattani, conservation journalist Swati Thiyagarajan and surgeon-novelist Kavery Nambisan.
This is the fifth translated work to win the annual prize that honors works of fiction by an Indian author. The books were selected from a shortlist of five, including three translations.
Other books shortlisted were The secret of more by Tejaswini Apte-Rahm, The Nemesis by Manoranjan Byapari, translated from Bengali by V. Ramaswamy, Mansur by Vikramajit Ram and I called my sister Silence by Manoj Rupda, translated from Hindi by Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar. Each of the five shortlisted authors will be rewarded ₹1 lakh. If the shortlisted piece is a translation, the translator will receive ₹50,000.
“The JCB Prize continues to uphold excellence and honors books that make us lose ourselves in their inner worlds, colorful realities, memorable characters, books that span the spectrum of our country in unique and incomparable ways,” said Literary Director Mita Kapur.