S H A R A N Y A    M A N I V A N N A N

POET & NOVELIST

SHARANYA MANIVANNAN is the author of seven books of fiction, poetry and children’s literature, including the South Asia Laadli Award-winning The High Priestess Never Marries and the JCB Prize-longlisted The Queen of Jasmine Country. Her most recent books comprise the Ila duology: the graphic novel Incantations Over Water and the picturebook Mermaids In The Moonlight, which she both wrote and illustrated. A deeply intuitive artist, Sharanya always has multiple manuscripts in progress and heeds the strongest call. As a Kolam Fellow, she hopes to be working on fiction — perhaps her novel-in-progress Constellation of Scars, or a mythological novella, or short stories — but if poetry or essays serenade her instead in that time, so be it!

A N U B H A    Y A D A V

NOVELIST, FILMMAKER & SCHOLAR

ANUBHA YADAV is an author, filmmaker and associate professor of media studies at the University of Delhi, India. Yadav has published two books- a novel and a nonfiction anthology on screenwriters of Bombay cinema. Recently, she has also conceptualised, researched & co-written a 5-part documentary podcast for the BBC on the work of Rajkumar Keswani, the investigative journalist who forewarned the world of the impending Bhopal Gas Disaster.

Her debut novel, The Anger of Saintly Men (Bee Books March 2021) tells the story of masculinity, how boys are made men in Indian families. The Anger of Saintly Men has had a stellar run in India, having been reviewed positively by almost all major newspapers, podcasts and magazines. Anubha Yadav has been featured in the Independent’s list of 9 Best Upcoming Authors of India. Her next work, Scripting Bollywood- Candid Conversations with Women Who Write Hindi Cinema (Women Unlimited (Kali; 2021) is the first research work on screenwriters of Indian cinema. It has been reviewed extensively by academics and film critics all over the world. It has also found a place in many libraries including, National Archives, Pune, American Film Conservatory and BFI library.

Current Work: At present, Yadav is working on her third book, a novel, experimental in form, it is part script, part news reports, part ethnographic writing by a character who is an aging flaneur. Its working title is Seepage.