Wins the Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize 2020 at Jaipur BookMark of Jaipur Literature Festival
Jaipur: The Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize, a first of its kind award for brilliance in book design, an attempt by the iconic bookstore to recognize and encourage the extraordinary work of illustrators, designers and publishers throughout India announced its Winner for the Fifth edition of the award at Jaipur BookMark of Jaipur Literature Festival.
Well known, Graphic Designer Sneha Pamneja was felicitated the prestigious award trophy and cash prize of Rs. 1 LAKH by Jurors Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Namita Gokhale and Shobhaa De amidst a beautiful gathering of designers, publishers and book lovers. The announcement was followed by a cocktail reception hosted by Oxford Bookstores honouring the winner.
Announcing Sneha Pamneja as the winner of the Prize the Jury said “The Jury of the Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize is delighted to unanimously award the Prize for 2020 to Sneha Pamneja for ‘Tiffin: Authentic Recipes Celebrating India’s Regional Cuisine. The book is authored by Sonal Ved and published by Roli Books.
Speaking at the award ceremony JLF Director, author, publisher and juror, Namita Gokhale said “The Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize is dedicated to understanding, appreciating and showcasing the aesthetics of visual values and design in publishing. It has been a privilege to be associated with this important award and to have observed it grow from strength to strength. “
“The winning cover this year, Tiffin, designed by Sneha Pamneja is visually arresting and impactful. It communicates the theme and essence of the book with immediacy and charm”
In addition to the winning book cover, the jury panel also acknowledged three more designers with special jury awards appreciating their remarkable contribution in designing the respective book covers. Designers Samya Arif and Amit Malhotra for Hijabistan published by HarperCollins, Saurav Das for Hicky’s Bengal Gazette published by Transquebar (Westland) & Gaurav Saini for Line on Fire: Ceasefire violations and India-Pakistan escalation dynamics published by Oxford University Press.
The final winner was chosen, following an intensive discussion by the distinguished jury, from a shortlist of six covers which were announced at the Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival on 19th January 2020. The jury of the prize includes Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Indian politician, Writer and Member of Parliament, Shobhaa De, Author, Indian columnist and novelist. Feroze Gujral, Indian philanthropist, Art patron, model and columnist, Namita Gokhale, Author, Publisher and Festival Director Priti Paul, Director, Apeejay Surrendra Group and the creative force behind the Oxford Bookstore chain.
The Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize appreciates the balance of graphics and narrative, particularly in our increasingly visual age, and believes that a book cover interprets and decodes the ensuing text in crucial ways that contribute to its ultimate success. The Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize is a first of its kind award for brilliance in book design, an attempt by the iconic bookstore to recognize and encourage the extraordinary work of illustrators, designers and publishers across India. Under the guidance of Ms. Priti Paul, Director, Apeejay Surrendra Group, Oxford Bookstores has been pushing all limits to empower the distributing business and praise the matter of books. Winning cover design is a basic piece of the achievement of a book and artists assume a key part in helping a book wind up plainly significant and make review.
About Jaipur BookMark
The Indian publishing industry has grown rapidly with the world’s attention converging on it: creating a meaningful B2B platform for publishers was thus essential and the Jaipur BookMark was conceived to run parallel to the Jaipur Literature Festival. In the 6 years since its inception, JBM is fast emerging as a nerve centre for the South Asian publishing industry and is indeed a focal point where books mean business.
Jaipur BookMark (JBM) brings together stakeholders of the book trade from across the world – publishers, literary agents, writers, translators, translation agencies and booksellers. It gives them an opportunity not just to ‘’talk business” through relevant sessions and focused roundtables, but also provides the right and fruitful atmosphere to inspire conversation and a space for one-on-one meetings and networking. This intimacy forges relationships and allows the occasional contract to be signed too.