Debut novelist Zara Chowdhary wins Shakti Bhatt Prize

Bengaluru: Author Zara Chowdhary has been awarded the Shakti Bhatt Prize for 2025 for her debut novel, The Lucky Ones.

It is a memoir set in Ahmedabad during the 2002 communal riots, when Zara was just 16. It describes the struggles of a dysfunctional family navigating generational trauma alongside the violence around them. With the award, Zara will receive a cash prize of Rs 2 lakh.

"We usually hear a buzz around a certain work, and Zara's was talked about more than most. I, personally, am interested in what strikes the mind and the heart, and The Lucky Ones does both. It is memorable and important. I am keen to know what she does in the future,” said Sheba Thayil, trustee, Shakti Bhatt Foundation.

Award in final year 

The award will be discontinued after this year.

It was instituted in 2008 in memory of poet and author Jeet Thayil’s late wife Shakti Bhatt, a writer and editor. For 17 years, the award has recognised the work of South Asian authors.

The first recipient, in 2008, was Mohammed Hanif for A Case of Exploding Mangoes. Over the years, it has been awarded to authors like Jamil Ahmad, Nilanjana Roy, Kynpham Sing Nongkynrih, and Anuk Arudpragasam.

“When we started in 2008, it was an unusual kind of prize. But 17 years down the line, there is a plethora of literary awards in India, and hundreds of lit fests from Dehradun to Kochi and Bengaluru, which highlight many worthwhile authors. We felt the time had come to move on,” Sheba told DH.