Heart Lamp Shines Bright: Kannada Short Story Collection Makes Booker History

In a landmark moment for Indian literature, Banu Mushtaq’s Heart Lamp has made history by becoming the first Kannada-language book, and the first short story collection ever, to win the prestigious International Booker Prize.

Translated with poetic nuance by Deepa Bhasthi, the book has been praised by the judges for its emotional depth, cultural resonance, and stylistic originality.

Heart Lamp brings together a series of intimate, richly textured stories that explore themes of womanhood, memory, and social transformation within South India. While Mushtaq’s prose is steeped in local detail, it speaks to universal human experiences, offering readers a bridge between the personal and the political.

The translation by Bhasthi has been widely celebrated not only for preserving the lyrical quality of the original Kannada but also for opening the stories up to a global readership without compromise.

This victory is a double milestone: not only is it the first time a book in Kannada has received such international acclaim, but Deepa Bhasthi is now the first Indian translator to win the International Booker Prize. The win is being hailed as a pivotal moment for Indian regional literature, which often receives less global attention than works in Hindi or English.

Critics and readers alike are calling Heart Lamp a trailblazer, one that may help shift the literary spotlight toward India’s vibrant and diverse linguistic landscape. With this accolade, Mushtaq and Bhasthi have illuminated a path for other underrepresented voices to rise on the global literary stage.