Rushdie's Children: Ten great writers from the Indian Subcontinent
It's not just Salman Rushdie and Arundhati Roy: we celebrate the new generation of voices from India, Bangladesh and Pakistan
Nadeem Aslam
Daniyal Mueenuddin
One of the most sensational literary debuts of the last few years, In Other Rooms, Other Wonders (2009)– Mueenuddin’s first short story collection – was an instant success in the US. Shortlisted for the Pulitzer and National Book Award, it went on to win both the Story Prize and the Commonwealth Writer’s Prize. Born in LA but raised in Pakistan, Mueenuddin only began to write after stints as a journalist, director, lawyer and mango farmer. In Other Rooms’ eight connected stories, set in Pakistan between the 70s and 90s, depict the wealthy Harouni family and their numerous employees. They deal with class and power, revealing a country where corruption is rampant and social mobility a distant dream.
Anuradha Roy
Sunjeev Sahota
Sunjeev Sahota is a third-generation Punjabi immigrant, whose grandparents moved to Derbyshire in 1966. Until the age of 18, he hadn’t read a single novel. While visiting relatives in India, Midnight’s Children opened everything up. He soon devoured Roy, Seth and others. He started to write in the evening, while working in marketing by day. His debut, Ours is the Streets, was published in 2011. It follows a Punjabi man in Sheffield who, despite a settled marriage and a young child, determines to become a suicide bomber after a trip to Afghanistan. Reviewers were smitten, praising Sahota’s lyrical tone, psychological depth and exploration of identity. With Kamila Shamsie, Sahota was honoured with a place on Granta’s once-a-decade ’20 under 40’ list. Then in 2015 The Year of the Runaways made the Man Booker Prize shortlist for a moving tale of immigration.
Bilal Tanweer
Born and raised in Karachi, Tanweer studied creative writing at Columbia before returning to Pakistan. His short fiction, poetry and translations earned him a Granta New Voice feature in 2011. The Scatter Is Too Great, his debut novel, comes recommended by Mohammed Hanif and Nadeem Aslam. It follows six characters caught up in the aftermath of a bomb blast in the heart of Karachi. Both a bricolage of distinctive voices and a powerful depiction of the city itself, it mapped urban Pakistan for a new audience.
Tahmima Anam
A Golden Age won the 2008 Commonwealth Writers Prize for best first book, and has been translated into twenty-two languages. In a Guardian interview this year, Anam described Roy's work as 'formative', and, with that, we come full circle in our south Asia tour.
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