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2023 Deodar-BLF Prize Anthology

Featuring the best ten stories from the first edition of the Deodar prize, this anthology is a collection of sparkling voices from different parts of India. Join us in supporting new writing : read here for free, or write to us for print copies at info@deodarprize.com

ABOUT

The Deodar Prize is an effort to recognise new themes and voices in literary fiction in India.

The deodar cedar is indigenous to the Himalayas, where its local name Devdar translates from the original Sanskrit as "timber of the gods". But during the British Raj, the pine tree — a more eroding species with better commercial value — got extensively cultivated in regions of Uttarakhand and Himachal. Today, we need more diverse and native varieties of plants (like the deodar) to build the resilience of our mountains. This prize is a tribute to the tree that grounds our soil, gives us its seed in the deodar cedar cone, and builds our home in the mountain

This year, the Deodar-BLF 2024 prize is dedicated to the "short story" — a format that goes back 5000 years. The Epic of Gilgamesh — the oldest recorded short story — reveals the emerging consciousness of humankind, as it was stepping out of the Neolithic era. But as a larger example, it shows us how stories best capture, and fossilise, the cultural imagination of any time.

Winner and Runners-up

Winner

Ateendriya
Gupta

For 'The Pilgrim'

Ateendriya is a writer, editor, communication consultant, and animal rescuer. Her writing has appeared in The Hindu, The Hindu Business Line, and Hindustan Times. In 2023, she was shortlisted for the Alpine Fellowship Writing Prize. She lives in Delhi with her five rescue cats.
 

 

Runner-up

Bashari
Chakraborti

For 'Mei’s Wallet'

Bashari Chakraborti makes a living by crunching financial numbers in the corporate world, but the world of words fascinates her. Her love for reading led her to dabble in writing as she practiced her craft on “bashariblog,” authored her first novel, “My Slice of the Sky,” and penned several short stories. Always on the lookout for stories, she draws her plots from the nooks and crannies of everyday life.

 

Runner-up

Ritika
Bali

For 'Anu’s Beauty Parlour'

Ritika Bali is a short story writer from Lucknow and a recent MFA graduate from Miami University. Her work has been featured in Mistake House, Kitaab, The Punch Magazine, and more. She is the winner of this year’s Literature Live! MyStory Contest (Jury's Pick) and the runner-up for the 2024 Ruskin Bond Literary Award. Her novel-in-progress excerpt was shortlisted for the 2024 Sandra Carpenter Memorial Fund Writers Scholarship. Besides brewing stories, Ritika enjoys café-hopping and plotting her next weekend getaway.
 

 

Special Mentions

'Dark Room'
Ashmita Chhabria
'Laughter under Refuge'
Vikram Mervyn

Shortlist 2024

'A World Without Alan'
Shambhobi Ghosh
Shantiniketan 

'Before The Candle March'
Rehana Sulthana
Bhubaneswar
 
'Mei's Wallet'
Bashari Chakraborti
Bengaluru
'Unwomaned'
Ananya Mahapatra
Delhi
 
'Box-shaped Heads with Pigtails'
Sumanya Velamur
Bengaluru

'The Room With a Terrace' 
Tejaswini Kale
Karjat

'Laughter Under Refuge'
Vikram Mervyn
Chennai
'The Pilgrim'
Ateendriya Gupta
Delhi
 
'The Man of The Shrine'
Revathi Raghunath
Bengaluru
 
'Spatial Reasoning'
Vikram Shah
Mumbai
 
'The Gods of Middle Income Households'
Dev Kakkar
Delhi
'Reincarnation at Silk Board Junction '
Abhinav Thanda
Bengaluru

'Dark Room'
Ashmita Chhabria
Chennai-Bangalore

'Anu's Beauty Parlor'
Ritika Bali
Lucknow

Jury 2025

Anjum Hasan

Anjum Hasan is the author of the novels History’s Angel, The Cosmopolitans, Neti, Neti and Lunatic in my Head, and the short story collections A Day in the Life and Difficult Pleasures. She also has a book of poems called Street on the Hill. History’s Angel recently won the Mumbai LitLive! and FICCI Fiction Book of the Year awards.

 

Rohit Vedprakash

Rohit Vedprakash is a creative producer with a career spanning over 20 years across film, streaming series, and advertising. Having worked at premier studios like Walt Disney India, UTV, and Fox Star Studios, his feature film credits include Maqbool, Mangal Pandey, Slumdog Millionaire, Fitoor, and Lootcase among others. Rohit also worked at Netflix India and was involved in setting up 13 Netflix Originals, including Season 2 of the acclaimed series, Delhi Crime, along with a host of popular ones such as Mismatched (Seasons 1 and 2), Khakee, The Fame Game, Killer Soup and Kohrra.

 

R Sivapriya

R Sivapriya has worked in trade publishing for fifteen years. Her one consistent focus over the years has been literary translations from various Indian languages and periods of history. She is now Publisher of literary fiction and nonfiction at Bloomsbury India.

 

Our Partners

Press and Media

16 Dec 2024

Crime, Culture and Politics Dominate Bangalore Literature Festival Day 1

READ

2 Dec 2023

Chennai author Srividya Tadepalli wins inaugural Deodar Prize for her short story ‘Funeral for a Demon’

READ

2 Dec 2023

Chennai-based writer wins 2023 Deodar Prize in short fiction category 

READ

2 Dec 2023

Chennai author Srividya Tadepalli wins inaugural Deodar Prize for her short story ‘Funeral for a Demon’

READ

28 Nov 2023

Roundtable on Khul Ke, Natasha Joshi with Chitra Ahanthem

WATCH

 

26 Sep 2023

Unleash your
literary potential

READ

 

Frequently Asked Questions

1What is the prize for the winning entry?
This year, we are collaborating with the Bangalore Literature Festival which will be held on 6–7 December, 2025. The author of the winning entry will be announced at the festival, awarded a cash prize of Rs. 1 Lakh, and will receive an unconditional offer to have their story feature in The Bombay Literary Magazine's December edition. The two runners up entries will be awarded the Promising Writer award, with the authors receiving feedback on their entries from a panel of editors, a cash prize of Rs. 10,000 each and an offer for publication in the Hammock Magazine.
2What is the eligibility criteria to participate?
All persons, above the age of 18, and holding Indian citizenship (resident in India or abroad) are eligible to submit. As we are trying to provide a platform for emerging writers, authors who have previously published a novel(s) are encouraged not to apply. If you have self-published a book, that is alright.

Note: the story being submitted for consideration should NOT have been published on any platform (online or offline).
3Can I submit more than one story?
No, we will accept only one submission per author.
4What is the deadline for submission?
Please send in your story by 11.59 pm, 15th August, 2024.
5Is there any theme or a word limit?
You are free to write any short fiction story in English. There is no theme this year. The maximum word limit is 2500 words (spaces not included).
6How do I submit my entry?
Please access our story submission form here
7Is there a submission format?
Yes. Kindly mention the title of your story and the number of words at the top of the page. Remember to number your pages and please do not mention your name on the story document. You may submit the document as a word doc or a PDF file.
8Who do I contact if I have any questions?
Please write to us on info@deodarprize.in