The JCB Prize for Literature at the Jaipur Literature Festival 2020
India’s richest literary award, the JCB Prize for Literature, presents a special series of
discussions at the 2020 Jaipur Literature Festival, offering the audience a deeper insight into the 2019 shortlisted books, the jury, and the broader vision of the JCB Literature Foundation. The greatest books of the year will also be available in the JCB Prize for Literature Festival Bookstore, managed by Full Circle.
The JCB Prize for Literature Series comprises four sessions with an exciting line-up of speakers, including the 2019 shortlisted authors Manoranjan Byapari, Roshan Ali, Perumal Murugan, and Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar; the 2019 Jury members, Pradip Krishen, K.R. Meera, Parvati Sharma along with writer and Literary Director of the JCB prize for
Literature, Mita Kapur, Translator and Literary critic, Arunava Sinha, Ananth Padmanabhan, CEO of HarperCollins India, Dipendra Manocha, founder of the Saksham Trust and member of the Executive Committee of the World Blind Union and Siddhant Shah, founder of Access for All.
The list of sessions is as follows:
23rd January at 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM in Samvad
There’s Gunpowder in the Air
Shortlisted author Manoranjan Byapari in conversation with author Anu Singh Choudhary discussing the power of
words and of silence.
24th January at 11:15 AM – 12:15 PM in Baithak
How to Judge a Book?
Join the 2019 JCB Prize for Literature Jury members, Pradip Krishen, filmmaker and environmentalist (Chair); K.R.
Meera, author; and Parvati Sharma, author, as they discuss what makes the cut as a piece of literature.
25th January at 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM in Samvad
Literature for All: The JCB Prize Shortlist in Braille
Supported by the JCB Literature Foundation the JCB Prize for Literature aims to broaden the reach and diversity of
contemporary Indian literature. Join Ananth Padmanabhan, CEO of HarperCollins India, Dipendra Manocha, founder
of the Saksham Trust and member of the Executive Committee of the World Blind Union and Siddhant Shah, founder
of Access for All in conversation with writer and Literary Director of the JCB prize for Literature Mita Kapur to discuss
accessibility of literature and literary fiction for the visually impaired.
26th January at 11:15 AM – 12:15 PM in Baithak
Negotiating the Male Space in Contemporary Fiction
Shortlisted authors Roshan Ali (Ib’s Endless Search for Satisfaction), Perumal Murugan (Trial by Silence and Lonely
Harvest), Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar (My Father’s Garden) and Literary translator, Arunava Sinha in conversation
with Manasi Subramaniam, Executive Editor and Head of Literary Rights of Penguin India, exploring contemporary
conceptualizations of masculinity in Indian writing, discussing leading men featured in searing works of fiction seeking
answers in settings at once unconventional and disturbing.
For additional information and interview request please contact Amrita Kapoor at Flint Culture
[email protected] | +91 – 9818058964
PRESS RELEASE
The JCB Prize for Literature celebrates the very finest achievements in Indian writing. It is presented each year to a
distinguished work of fiction by an Indian writer, as selected by the jury. The Prize encourages translations and aims to
introduce new audiences to works of Indian literature written in languages other than their own.
The 2019 JCB Prize for Literature was awarded to The Far Field by Madhuri Vijay, published by HarperCollins India.