It was an exciting evening at Taj Palace, New Delhi this Sunday (March 17, 2024) as the audience witnessed a heart-warming celebration of Indian women writers on the occasion of AutHer Awards 2024 winner announcements. The AutHer Awards, a joint venture between The Times of India and JK Paper, celebrates women authors who have added value and creativity to the literary space. From authors, publishers, academicians, and book lovers to bureaucrats, politicians, and artistes– the fifth edition of AutHer Awards was attended by some of the biggest names in the literary world. The gala winner announcement event was held at the Taj Palace in New Delhi.
Veteran actress Sharmila Tagore was the Chief Guest for AutHer Awards 2024.
The winners are…
The AutHer Awards 2024 winners were announced for four major categories – Fiction, Non-Fiction, Children’s Literature, and Debut. A Lifetime Achievement award, a Prize in the Popular Choice category (based on an online poll), and a Best Manuscript Award were also given.
The AutHer Awards 2024- Best Author Fiction was given to two women authors this time! While Tashan Cyrus Mehta won the award for ‘Mad Sisters of Esi’ (published by HarperCollins India), Sonora Jha won the award for ‘The Laughter’ (published by Penguin Random House India).
The AutHer Awards 2024- Best Author Non-Fiction went to Sudha Bharadwaj for ‘From Phansi Yard: My Year with the Women of Yerawada’, published by Juggernaut Publications.
The AutHer Awards 2024- Best Author Debut Award was also awarded to two women writers! Rajasree Variyar won the award for her book ‘The Daughters of Madurai’ (published by Hachette India), and Neerja Chowdhury won the award for How Prime Ministers Decide (published by Aleph Book Company).
The AutHer Awards 2024 for Best Children’s Author was also given to two women writers! Author Devika Cariapa won the award for her book ‘A Children’s History of India in 100 Objects’ published by Penguin Random House India, while Shabnam Minwalla won the award for ‘Zen’ which is also published by Penguin Random House India. It is noted that Shabnam Minwalla had also won the AutHer Award in Children’s Literature category in 2022 for her book ‘Murder at Daisy Apartments’.
The Popular Choice Award was won by Sahar Zaman for her book ‘Talat Mahmood: A Definitive Biography’ (self-published), for garnering the maximum number of votes online. For the unversed, Sahar Zaman is not only a popular news anchor but also the grand niece of acclaimed singer Talat Mahmood.
Veteran Indian novelist and Sahitya Akademi Winner, Mridula Garg was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award this year for her timeless contribution to Indian writing in both English and Hindi languages.
And lastly, the AutHer Awards 2024 for Best Manuscript was introduced last year to recognise and inspire budding writers to let their imaginations soar. Last year’s winner in this category, Aditi Sowmyanarayan, got a chance to work with the wonderful team of Readomania and JK Paper. Aditi’s book was published by JK Paper and supported by publisher Readomania.
This year, the AutHer Awards 2024 for Best Manuscript was given to Vibha Sangeeta Krishnakumar for ‘Kaushalya’.
And just like last year, this year too we have a close Second for the AutHer Awards 2024 for Best Manuscript category. Ananya Raghu was awarded a Certificate of Excellence for ‘Havoc’.
The selection process
The Longlist, Shortlist, and Winners for AutHer Awards 2024 were chosen after multiple layers of screening, followed by detailed discussions among a panel of eminent jury. This year The Times of India received more than 2000 entries, submitted by both publishers and authors, for the coveted women writers awards which is the first of its kind in India. The jury considered books by women published in India between December 2022 and November 2023.
Check the complete Longlist for AutHer Awards 2024 HERE
Check the complete Shortlist for AutHer Awards 2024 HERE
The Jury
The Jury for this year’s AutHer Awards 2024 in different categories included:
1. Fiction: Anuja Chauhan, Pallavi Aiyar, Satyarth Nayak
2. Non-Fiction: Vikas Swarup, Parvati Sharma, Upinder Singh
3. Children’s Literature: Preeti Vyas, Christopher Doyle, Kevin Missal
4. Debut: Tisca Chopra, Shipra Khanna, Nikesh Murali
Talking about AutHer Awards and the selection process, Jaya Bhattacharji Rose, Literary Director- AutHer Awards 2024, said at the event, “There is a wide spectrum of writing on display today. It represents not just the traditional literary styles of fiction and non-fiction, but also — in the age of AI — cutting-edge, modern forms. In fact, some of the most powerful literature on display in these awards allows writers the space to explore the “what if” scenarios far more freely than any other structured form of writing would enable.
“These literary awards are our effort to honour the best of India’s women writers who are doing sterling work in making the invisible visible and articulating the silences. AutHer Awards is a beacon of this shift in Indian literature. We have an incredible variety of books featured by women tonight. Each distinctive. Each worthy of being heard, seen and read.
“I hope you enjoy reading and discovering the AutHer awards literature as much as we have.”
For more details, log on to https://autherawards.in/
Veteran actress Sharmila Tagore was the Chief Guest for AutHer Awards 2024.
The winners are…
The AutHer Awards 2024 winners were announced for four major categories – Fiction, Non-Fiction, Children’s Literature, and Debut. A Lifetime Achievement award, a Prize in the Popular Choice category (based on an online poll), and a Best Manuscript Award were also given.
The AutHer Awards 2024- Best Author Fiction was given to two women authors this time! While Tashan Cyrus Mehta won the award for ‘Mad Sisters of Esi’ (published by HarperCollins India), Sonora Jha won the award for ‘The Laughter’ (published by Penguin Random House India).
The AutHer Awards 2024- Best Author Non-Fiction went to Sudha Bharadwaj for ‘From Phansi Yard: My Year with the Women of Yerawada’, published by Juggernaut Publications.
The AutHer Awards 2024- Best Author Debut Award was also awarded to two women writers! Rajasree Variyar won the award for her book ‘The Daughters of Madurai’ (published by Hachette India), and Neerja Chowdhury won the award for How Prime Ministers Decide (published by Aleph Book Company).
The AutHer Awards 2024 for Best Children’s Author was also given to two women writers! Author Devika Cariapa won the award for her book ‘A Children’s History of India in 100 Objects’ published by Penguin Random House India, while Shabnam Minwalla won the award for ‘Zen’ which is also published by Penguin Random House India. It is noted that Shabnam Minwalla had also won the AutHer Award in Children’s Literature category in 2022 for her book ‘Murder at Daisy Apartments’.
The Popular Choice Award was won by Sahar Zaman for her book ‘Talat Mahmood: A Definitive Biography’ (self-published), for garnering the maximum number of votes online. For the unversed, Sahar Zaman is not only a popular news anchor but also the grand niece of acclaimed singer Talat Mahmood.
Veteran Indian novelist and Sahitya Akademi Winner, Mridula Garg was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award this year for her timeless contribution to Indian writing in both English and Hindi languages.
And lastly, the AutHer Awards 2024 for Best Manuscript was introduced last year to recognise and inspire budding writers to let their imaginations soar. Last year’s winner in this category, Aditi Sowmyanarayan, got a chance to work with the wonderful team of Readomania and JK Paper. Aditi’s book was published by JK Paper and supported by publisher Readomania.
This year, the AutHer Awards 2024 for Best Manuscript was given to Vibha Sangeeta Krishnakumar for ‘Kaushalya’.
And just like last year, this year too we have a close Second for the AutHer Awards 2024 for Best Manuscript category. Ananya Raghu was awarded a Certificate of Excellence for ‘Havoc’.
The selection process
The Longlist, Shortlist, and Winners for AutHer Awards 2024 were chosen after multiple layers of screening, followed by detailed discussions among a panel of eminent jury. This year The Times of India received more than 2000 entries, submitted by both publishers and authors, for the coveted women writers awards which is the first of its kind in India. The jury considered books by women published in India between December 2022 and November 2023.
Check the complete Longlist for AutHer Awards 2024 HERE
Check the complete Shortlist for AutHer Awards 2024 HERE
The Jury
The Jury for this year’s AutHer Awards 2024 in different categories included:
1. Fiction: Anuja Chauhan, Pallavi Aiyar, Satyarth Nayak
2. Non-Fiction: Vikas Swarup, Parvati Sharma, Upinder Singh
3. Children’s Literature: Preeti Vyas, Christopher Doyle, Kevin Missal
4. Debut: Tisca Chopra, Shipra Khanna, Nikesh Murali
Talking about AutHer Awards and the selection process, Jaya Bhattacharji Rose, Literary Director- AutHer Awards 2024, said at the event, “There is a wide spectrum of writing on display today. It represents not just the traditional literary styles of fiction and non-fiction, but also — in the age of AI — cutting-edge, modern forms. In fact, some of the most powerful literature on display in these awards allows writers the space to explore the “what if” scenarios far more freely than any other structured form of writing would enable.
“These literary awards are our effort to honour the best of India’s women writers who are doing sterling work in making the invisible visible and articulating the silences. AutHer Awards is a beacon of this shift in Indian literature. We have an incredible variety of books featured by women tonight. Each distinctive. Each worthy of being heard, seen and read.
“I hope you enjoy reading and discovering the AutHer awards literature as much as we have.”
For more details, log on to https://autherawards.in/
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