Writers

Jurors in trial of Rushdie's attacker likely won't hear about his motive

Jurors picked for the trial of a man who severely injured author Salman Rushdie in a knife attack likely won't hear about the fatwa that authorities have said motivated him to act, a prosecutor said Friday. We're not going there, District Attorney Jason Schmidt said during a conference in preparation for the Oct. 15 start of Hadi Matar's trial in Chautauqua County Court. Schmidt said raising a motive was unnecessary, given that the attack was witnessed and recorded by a live audience who had gathered to hear Rushdie speak. Potential jurors will nevertheless face questions meant to root out implicit bias because Matar, of Fairview, New Jersey, is the son of Lebanese immigrants and practices Islam, Judge David Foley said. He said it would be foolish to assume potential jurors had not heard about the fatwa through media coverage of the case. Matar, 26, is charged with attempted murder for stabbing Rushdie, 77, more than a dozen times, blinding him in one eye, as he took the stage at a

Arundhati Roy awarded UK's Pen Pinter Prize for her 'unflinching' writings

Booker Prize-winning author Arundhati Roy, currently facing the threat of prosecution over historic comments on Kashmir 14 years ago, was on Thursday honoured with the prestigious Pen Pinter Prize 2024 for her unflinching and unswerving writings. The prize, established in 2009 by the charity English PEN, defends freedom of expression and celebrates literature in memory of Nobel-Laureate playwright Harold Pinter. Roy expressed her delight at being named this year's winner amid an incomprehensible turn the world is taking. I am delighted to accept the PEN Pinter prize. I wish Harold Pinter were with us today to write about the almost incomprehensible turn the world is taking. Since he isn't, some of us must do our utmost to try to fill his shoes, said 62-year-old Roy. The renowned author, who won the Booker Prize for her debut novel The God of Small Things', was chosen by this year's judges Chair of English PEN Ruth Borthwick; actor and activist Khalid Abdalla; and writer and musici

Ghosts who act: Rise of creepy, but lucrative digital afterlife industry

It may soon be possible to have digital replicas of Madhubala and Dilip Kumar star in a 2025 movie. This may be creepy, but also lucrative

Sahitya Akademi Awards 2023: Neelum Saran Gaur, Sanjeev among 24 recipients

Twenty four writers, including English author Neelum Saran Gaur and Hindi novelist Sanjeev, received the Sahitya Akademi Award for 2023 here on Tuesday. The award ceremony coincided with the 70th anniversary celebrations of the National Academy of Letters at the 'Sahityotsav'. The awards were given for literary works including nine books of poetry, six novels, five of short stories, three essays and one literary study. Sanjeev for his novel "Mujhe Pehchaano" and Gaur for her book "Requiem in Raga Janki" received the prestigious award. Sadiqua Nawab Saher received the award for her book "Rajdev Ki Amrai" in Urdu, while Swarnjit Savi was awarded for his book of poetry "Mann Di Chip" in Punjabi. Other recipients of the awards in poetry include Vijay Verma (Dogri), Vinod Joshi (Gujarati), Manshoor Banihali (Kashmiri), Sorokkhaibam Gambhini (Manipuri), Ashutosh Parida (Odia), Gaje Singh Rajpurohit (Rajasthani), Arun Ranjan Mishra (Sanskrit) and Vinod Asudani (Sindhi). Apart from Gaur,

Renowned litterateur and Padma Shri awardee Usha Kiran Khan dies in Patna

Renowned litterateur and Padma Shri awardee Usha Kiran Khan passed away at a private hospital after a brief illness here on Sunday. She was 78. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expressed his condolences over Khan's demise, praising her as a prolific writer who contributed significantly to Hindi and Maithili literature. "She was a great writer who wrote several novels in Hindi and Maithili. Khan, a recipient of Padma Shri and Sahitya Akademi awards, will always be remembered for her works," the CM said in his condolence message. "Her demises has created a void in our lives that can never be filled. It's an irreparable loss to the Hindi and Maithili literature. My heartfelt condolences to her family and loved ones during this difficult time. May her soul rest in eternal peace", Kumar said. Khan's literary contributions earned her widespread recognition, including prestigious honours such as the Padma Shri in 2015, the Sahitya Akademi Award, the Mahadevi Verma Award, the Dinakar ...

Sale of e-books not rising, even shrinking in some countries: Damon Galgut

Jaipur Literature Festival 2024: In a conversation with Business Standard, Galgut said currently non-fiction is thriving, and fiction is more under stress

Salman Rushdie gets 'Lifetime Disturbing the Peace Award' in New York

The recipient of the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade got another surprise honour - this time for 'disturbing the peace' by the Vaclav Havel Center at an event in New York

Suspect in attack on Salman Rushdie scheduled for trial in January 2024

The accused, Hadi Matar is expected to stand trial on January 8, according to Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt

Late-night shows return as actors resume talks to end standoff of writers'

Late-night talk shows are returning after a five-month absence brought on by the Hollywood writers strike, while actors will begin talks that could end their own long work walk-off. CBS's The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live! and NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon were the first shows to leave the air when the writers strike began on May 2, and now will be among the first to return on Monday night. Comedian John Oliver got his first take on the strike out, exuberantly returning Sunday night to his Last Week Tonight show on HBO and delivering full-throated support for the strike. Oliver cheerily delivered a recap of stories from the last five months before turnings serious, calling the strike an immensely difficult time for all those in the industry. To be clear, this strike happened for good reasons. Our industry has seen its workers severely squeezed in recent years, Oliver said. So, the writers guild went to strike and thankfully won. But, it took

The Hollywood writers strike is over after guild leaders approve contract

Hollywood's writers strike was declared over after nearly five months Tuesday night when board members from their union approved a contract agreement with studios, bringing the industry at least partly back from a historic halt in production. The governing boards of the eastern and western branches of the Writers Guild of America and their joint negotiating committee all voted to accept the deal, two days after the tentative agreement was reached with a coalition of Hollywood's biggest studios, streaming services and production companies. After the vote they declared that the strike would be over and writers would be free to start on scripts at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday. Late-night talk shows the first to go dark when writers walked out on May 2 are likely the first shows that will resume. Scripted shows will take longer to return, with actors still on strike and no negotiations yet on the horizon. The writers still have to vote to ratify the contract themselves in early October, but .

Writers Guild reaches an agreement with Hollywood studios to end strike

Union leaders and Hollywood studios reached a tentative agreement Sunday to end a historic screenwriters strike after nearly five months, though no deal is yet in the works for striking actors. The Writers Guild of America announced the deal in a joint statement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the group that represents studios, streaming services and production companies in negotiations. WGA has reached a tentative agreement with the AMPTP, the guild said in an email to members. This was made possible by the enduring solidarity of WGA members and extraordinary support of our union siblings who joined us on the picket lines for over 146 days. The three-year contract agreement -- settled on after five marathon days of renewed talks by WGA and AMPTP negotiators that was joined at times by studio executives -- must be approved by the guild's board and members before the strike officially ends. In a longer message from the guild shared by members on social

Hollywood writers' strike continues: Here's what you need to know

Hollywood writers strike differ in terms of streaming show residuals, AI use, the number of writers required for shows, and employment durations

Hollywood strikes pose credit risk for $113 million municipal bond deal

Seller of debt, group affiliated with Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, is familiar to muni-market participants because it has issued bonds several times for its LA museum

Author Amitav Ghosh on poppy fields, shifting mountains and eco-anxiety

A prolific writer, Ghosh talks to Chintan Girish Modi about ec0-anxiety, his passion for cooking, and Waheeda Rehman

Hollywood actors set to join writers' strike for a pay hike amid AI threat

Hollywood actors will join writers' strike over low pay and threat posed by implementation of artificial intelligence, actors will join the protest from Thursday midnight

Hollywood actors may join screenwriters on strike soon: Here's why

Hollywood actors may be days from joining screenwriters in what would be the first two-union strike in the industry in more than six decades, with huge consequences for film and television production. Here is a look at how it could play out, and why it's happening. WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH ACTORS' NEGOTIATIONS? The contract between the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Radio and Television Artists and the studios, streaming services and production companies that employ them had been set to expire Friday night at midnight Pacific time. But hours before that the two sides said they had agreed to extend the current contract, and talks on the next one, through July 12. Unionised actors have voted overwhelmingly to authorize their leaders to call a strike if no deal is reached. Talks also went past the deadline in 2014 and 2017, and agreements resulted both times. Reports have said the talks have been productive. But some actors have expressed worry that their leaders may not be

National Geographic lays off last writers, will not be sold in US anymore

National Geographic layoffs: Job cuts by Disney, the publication's parent company, were the second over the past nine months

1,000 Hollywood writers rally in Los Angeles for new contract with studios

Fifty days into a strike with no end in sight, about 1,000 Hollywood writers and their supporters marched and rallied in Los Angeles for a new contract with studios that includes payment guarantees and job security. Speakers at the Writers Guild of America's WGA Strong March and Rally for a Fair Contract on Wednesday emphasized the broad support for their cause shown by other Hollywood unions including actors in their own contract negotiations and labor at large. We're all in it together, we're all fighting the same fight, for a sustainable job in the face of corporate greed, Adam Conover, a writer and a member of the guild's board and its negotiating committee, told a crowd at the end of the march at the La Brea Tar Pits. We are going to win because they need us. Writers are the ones who stare at a blank page. We are the ones who invent the characters, tell the stories and write the jokes that their audiences love. They'd have nothing without us. Talks with the Alliance of Motion

Writer Arundhati Roy receives European Essay Prize for lifetime achievement

Writer Arundhati Roy has been awarded the 45th European Essay Prize for lifetime achievement, the Charles Veillon Foundation has announced. Roy has been awarded the prize for the French translation of her compilation of essays titled "Azadi" (2021). "The jury of the Prix Europeen de l'Essai wishes to highlight an enriching work in terms of reflection on the construction of the world and the relationship with language. Arundhati Roy uses the essay as a form of combat, analysing fascism and the way it is being structured. This is an issue that is increasingly occupying our lives. Her essays offer shelter to a multitude of people," the Foundation said in a statement. The jury also acknowledged Roy's "commitment to political action". In "Azadi", Roy has reflected on the meaning of freedom in a world of "growing authoritarianism". The essays include meditations on language, public as well as private, and on the role of fiction and alternative imaginations in current times. The Delhi-ba

As Hollywood fights AI, Indian screenwriters struggle for pay, credit

Minimum basic contract and a fair deal for their stories remains an ongoing battle