DSC Prize 2013 longlist announced

Fifteen titles, including three translated works and four debut works, are in the race for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature 2013 vying for a $50,000 prize money.

Translated works of two Malayalam authors, Anand and Benyamin have been chosen for their works "Book of Destruction" and "Goat Days", respectively, while the translation of Marathi filmmaker Sachin Kundalkar's debut book "Cobalt Blue" is also in the list.

There were over 65 entries for the coveted prize. Out of the 15 names in the longlist, three authors from the subcontinent have also been included.

Pakistan's Mohsin Hamid and Nadeem Aslam are in the list for "How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia" and "The Blind Man's Garden", respectively. Sri Lankan authors Nayomi Munaweera and Ru Freeman have been chosen for their respective works "Island of a Thousand Mirrors" and "On Sal Mal Lane".

According to Antara Dev Sen, chair of the jury, the longlist offers a wonderful variety of experiences from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

"The list reflects much of the exhilarating and bewildering diversity that is the hallmark of South Asian fiction," she said in a statement.

"I am particularly happy that it includes novels in translation from other Indian languages," she added.

Other novels included in the list are: Cyrus Mistry's "Chronicle of a Corpse Bearer", Joydeep Roy-Bhattacharya's "The Watch", Manu Joseph's "The Illicit Happiness of Other People", Nilanjana Roy's "The Wildings", Philip Hensher's "Scenes from Early Life", Shyam Selvadurai's "The Hungry Ghosts", Sonora Jha's "Foreign" and Uzma Aslam Khan's "Thinner Than Skin".

The novels cover stories around war, terrorism and conflict, and examine issues that occur due to migration, caste or sexual identity, terror and alienation.

The shortlist for the DSC Prize will be announced in November and the winner will be announced at the DSC Jaipur Literature Festival in January 2014.