Guwahati: Geetanjali Shree, a Hindi novelist from Mainpuri of Uttar Pradesh made history by being the first Indian to be nominated for, much alone win, one of the most prestigious literary awards.
Shree is the first Hindi novelist to win the International Booker Prize for her novel, ‘Tomb of Sand,’ or initially ‘Ret Samadhi.’ She has written three novels and several story collections. With this triumph, ‘Tomb of Sand’ becomes the first novel written in an Indian language to be awarded the renowned International Booker Prize.
64-year-old Shree’s work has been translated into a variety of languages, including English, French, German, Serbian, and Korean, and has been nominated for and earned a number of awards and fellowships. One of the first books to be published in the UK is ‘Tomb of Sand.’
The 64-year-old novelist expressed his delight at being the first piece of fiction in Hindi to enter the Booker shortlist, saying, “It feels nice to be the method through which it happened.”
Shree remarked in her acceptance speech in London on Thursday (May 27), “I never imagined I’d win the Booker, and I never imagined I’d be able to. What a great honour; I’m astonished, overjoyed, honoured, and humbled.”
‘Tomb of Sand,’ first released in Hindi in 2018, is the first of Shree’s books to be published in English in the UK by Tilted Axis Press in August 2021.