Namita Gokhale chairs jury of Dylan Thomas Prize

Author and Jaipur Literature Festival co-director Namita Gokhale is chairing the jury of the Dylan Thomas Prize for the second year in succession. She is the first Indian to chair the jury of this prestigious Prize.

Worth £20,000, the Dylan Thomas Prize is the world's largest literary prize for writers aged 39 and under. Poet Dylan Thomas passed away aged 39 in 1953. Past winners of this Prize include such well-loved names as Lucy Caldwell, Fiona McFarlane, Joshua Ferris, Max Porter, and Guy Gunaratne.

Speaking to The Asian Age, Ms Gokhale said, "I am delighted to be chairing the jury of this extraordinary prize, so rich in diversity and inspirational in its support for young voices."

This year’s longlist for the Prize celebrates female voices from around the world, including Tice Cin (Keeping the House), Patricia Lockwood (No One is Talking about This), Dantiel W. Moniz (Milk Blood Heat), Fiona Mozley (Hot Stew), Megan Nolan (Acts of Desperation), Helen Oyeyemi (Peaces), Desiree Bailey (What Noise Against the Cane) and Nidhi Zak/Aria Eipe (Auguries of a Minor God). Nathan Harris (The Sweetness of Water), Caleb Azumah Nelson (Open Water), Anuk Arudpragasam (A Passage North) and Brandon Taylor (Filthy Animals) complete the 12-strong list.

A shortlist of six names will be announced on March 31 followed by the winner’s ceremony held in Swansea on May 12, two days before International Dylan Thomas Day.