Indian author and poet Meena Kandasamy on Monday won the Hermann Kesten Prize of the German chapter of the PEN International writers’ association.
Kandasamy told German broadcaster Deutsche Welle that she is not sure how to process the news. “Previous recipients include [Nobel laureate] Günter Grass and [Nobel laureate] Harold Pinter, and the weight of what this prize means is actually still sinking in,” she added.
The prize is given to individuals for their outstanding efforts in support of persecuted writers.
Kandasamy’s notable works include Ms Militancy, The Gypsy Goddess , Exquisite Cadavers, When I Hit You: Or, a Portrait of the Writer As a Young Wife.
Born in 1984 in Chennai, the author on her website says that her “writing aims to deconstruct trauma and violence while spotlighting the militant resistance against caste, gender, and ethnic oppressions”.
She has been consistently speaking about the repression of authors, such as poet-activist Varavara Rao and Former Delhi University professor GN Saibaba, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government.
Rao is accused of making inflammatory speeches at the Elgar Parishad conclave held at Shaniwar Wada in Pune on December 31, 2017, which the authorities claim triggered violence at the Bhima-Koregaon war memorial the next day. Saibaba has been lodged in the Nagpur Central Jail since March 2017. He has been sentenced to life for having Maoist links.
Cornelia Zetzsche, vice president of PEN Centre Germany, described Kandasamy as “a fearless fighter for democracy and human rights”.
Culture minister Angela Dorn of Hesse state, which sponsors the prize, also praised her saying that the author fought against inequality and repression. “She gives victims of violence a voice and always speaks up when intellectuals, dissidents and academics face distress,” Dorn said.
Kandasamy will be awarded the Hermann Kesten Prize on November 15 at a ceremony in Darmstadt.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!