For readers who enjoy literature, it’s clear that South Asian voices remain underrepresented on the global stage. Despite a population of over two billion and widespread fluency in English, the region’s literary output has historically received limited attention.
It was this gap that inspired a collective of authors to establish the South Asia Speaks fellowship, a program designed to connect emerging writers and poets with accomplished mentors. Applications for the fellowship’s fifth edition are set to open on Monday.
The fellowship provides participants with six one-on-one sessions with their mentor, alongside a series of workshops and masterclasses aimed at developing their craft. Past sessions have been led by prominent figures including Pankaj Mishra, Kamila Shamsie, Vauhini Vara, and Taymour Soomro.
This year, participants will have the opportunity to learn from journalists such as Mira Kamdar, Sanam Maher, Roman Gautam, and Taran Khan, as well as novelists Deepa Anappara, Diksha Basu, Mahesh Rao, Prayaag Akbar, and VV Ganeshananthan.
Poetry fellows will receive guidance from Tishani Doshi, while translation will be overseen by Arunava Sinha and Srinath Perur. Writers with disabilities can benefit from the Beyond Ability programme under Abhishek Anicca’s supervision.
A new addition this year is the oral history category, with award-winning historian Aanchal Malhotra serving as mentor. Malhotra, co-founder of the Museum of Material Memory, is recognized for her work documenting the lived experiences of Partition and for preserving family histories through heirlooms and social ethnography.
Since its inception, the fellowship has paired 98 fellows with 31 mentors, resulting in seven books published with esteemed publishers such as Penguin Random House, Bloomsbury, and HarperCollins. The initiative was founded by Sonia Faleiro, who continues to serve as programme director, supported by board members Fatima Bhutto, Isaac Chotiner, and Julia Churchill.
Applicants must provide a writing sample and proof of citizenship or residence in one of the eligible countries: Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and Afghanistan. Afghan applicants may apply even if living abroad. Fiction and non-fiction writers must have an ongoing project, while other categories can submit a proposal. The application window closes on September 30.
