Jhumpa Lahiri wins $50,000 DSC prize for south Asian literature

The Lowland’s ‘restrained lyricism’ and ‘true lyricism’ secures the region’s richest books prize for the Indian American novelist

The Indian American writer Jhumpa Lahiri has won Asia’s richest literary prize for her novel The Lowland, which pivots around the Naxalite uprisings of the 1960s. The Pulitzer prize-winning novelist beat four other shortlisted writers to the $50,000 (£33,000) DSC award for south Asian fiction with a work that was described by chair of judges Keki N Daruwalla as “a superb novel written in restrained prose with moments of true lyricism” written written “by a writer at the height of her powers”.

Celebration of the award, at the Jaipur literature festival, was dampened by the announcement at the start of the ceremony that sponsors DSC were withdrawing after five years. With the Man Asia prize also seeking a new sponsor – so far without success – Asia is at risk of losing both its international awards.

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