Jamshedpur, Oct 19: The literary stage is set as The New India Foundation presents the Longlist for the Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay NIF Book Prize 2023, recognizing outstanding non-fiction works on modern and contemporary Indian history.
This marks the sixth edition of the prestigious prize, honoring 10 remarkable books that offer profound insights into the evolution of Independent India.
The Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay NIF Book Prize (KCBP) stands as India’s foremost accolade for non-fiction literature. Open to writers of all nationalities delving into any facet of Indian history post-Independence, the prize, instituted in 2018, boasts an award of INR 15 lakhs along with a citation at the Bangalore Literature Festival.
The esteemed Jury for the 2023 KCBP, led by political scientist Niraja Gopal Jayal, alongside historian Srinath Raghavan, columnist-writer Navtej Sarna, columnist-writer Yamini Aiyar, and entrepreneur Manish Sabharwal, curated the Longlist from a pool of diverse and globally sourced nominations.
Jury Chair Niraja Gopal Jayal commented, “The Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay Book Prize Longlist this year is a testament to greater diversity in recent non-fiction. Each of the 10 selected books extends, enriches and nuances our understanding of India today…”
The 2023 Longlist (in alphabetical order) comprises a compelling array of titles: The Eastern Gate: War and Peace in Nagaland, Manipur and India’s Far East by Sudeep Chakravarti [Simon & Schuster], Founding Mothers of the Indian Republic: Gender Framing of the Politics of the Constitution by Achyut Chetan [Cambridge University Press], Delhi Reborn: Partition and Nation Building in India’s Capital by Rotem Geva [Stanford University Press], Insurgency and the Artist:
The Art of the Freedom Struggle in India by Vinay Lal [Roli Books], Crooked Cats: Beastly Encounters in the Anthropocene by Nayanika Mathur [HarperCollins], Writer, Rebel, Soldier, Lover: The Many Lives of Agyeya by Akshaya Mukul [Penguin], The Journey of Hindi Language Journalism in India: From Raj to Swaraj and Beyond by Mrinal Pande [Orient BlackSwan], Land, Guns, Caste, Woman: The Memoir of a Lapsed Revolutionary by Gita Ramaswamy [Navayana], House of the People: Parliament and the Making of Indian Democracy by Ronojoy Sen [Cambridge University Press] and Nehru’s India: A History in Seven Myths by Taylor C. Sherman [Princeton University Press].
