'Tomb of Sand' Wins International Booker Prize 2022

The Hindi novel "Tomb of Sand" by Delhi-based author Geetanjali Shree is the first Indian language book to win the prestigious International Booker Prize. Tomb of Sand, originally 'Ret Samadhi', was translated by Daisy Rockwell. The novel is based on the borderline 80-year-old heroine.

The 80-year-old protagonist of this book, Ma, insists on a trip to Pakistan while confronting the unresolved trauma of her teenage experience during the partition and becoming a mother, daughter, woman, and feminist.

Geetanjali Shree said that she never dreamt of the Booker saying, “I never dreamt of the Booker, I never thought I could. What a huge recognition, I’m amazed, delighted, honored, and humbled.”

Shree, 64, the author of a collection of three novels and several stories, translated her work into English, French, German, Serbian, and Korean. First published in Hindi in 2018, Tomb of Sand is the first of her book published in English in the United Kingdom by Tilted Axis Press in August 2021.

This year, the judges considered 135 books, and for the first time in 2022, all finalists and translators will receive GBP 2,500 each from GBP 1,000 in the previous year, bringing the total prize to GBP 80,000.