Bridges over silences: Nobel laureate Abdulrazak Gurnah on power of the novel

Kozhikode: Known for his poignant explorations of the immigrant experience and the lingering shadows of colonialism, Nobel laureate Abdulrazak Gurnah spoke to DH's Ashwin B M on history, displacement, and what writing means to him after global recognition.

How does writing help reclaim histories that have been effectively erased or distorted by colonial narratives?

Historians are already doing a specific kind of job visiting, revisiting, and challenging received narratives. But let’s be honest, not everybody reads historians. Historical fiction, when it works, bridges the gap between scholarly research and popular knowledge. By doing this, literature challenges entrenched ideas about colonialism and, perhaps more importantly, about how we live in the aftermath.

When writing about such heavy themes as trauma and displacement, what specific responsibility does a novelist carry?

I don’t think a novelist has a "responsibility" in that sense. People write because they feel moved to do so. To talk about responsibility is to put a burden on the writer. My view is: Let the writer write whatever they want. We shouldn’t prescribe what they "must" do. The freedom to write is essential.

Do you feel that global literature still privileges certain voices over others?

Possibly, and that is tied to history, language, and the mechanics of the market. It is undoubtedly harder for someone writing in a place without a robust publishing infrastructure or in a minority language. However, my feeling is that nothing is truly lost. You might not be read globally right now, but someone might discover a text centuries later from a small village in Nepal and bring it to light. If you’re lucky, you’re known now, if not, someone will find you later.

Has the Nobel Prize fundamentally changed your relationship with writing?

It means my work is now better known and much more available, which is a gift. But does it change the actual writing or the internal process of creation? Not at all. The work remains the work.

After years of movement and memory, what does the concept of “home” mean to you today?

I now have two homes. I live in England, and I have the home I belong to, which is Zanzibar. This isn't unusual nowadays, perhaps it never was. When people move, they make a home in a new place, but they don't lose the original one. 

Historians are already doing a specific kind of job visiting revisiting and challenging received narratives.
But let’s be honest not everybody reads historians. Historical fiction when it works bridges the gap between scholarly research and popular knowledge.

Abdulrazak Gurnah Nobel laureate

What advice would you give to younger writers from the Global South approaching the art of storytelling?

Write as truthfully as you can. You don't come to writing because of an obligation. You do it because you want to say something. Whether you are from the Global South or the Global North, you should have the freedom to write about whatever you choose. It is then up to the readers to decide what they want to engage with.