Two authors from Indian origin nominated for 2023 British Academy Book Prize

Nandini Das and Kris Manjapra from UK- based authors got nominated for the 2023 British Academy Book Prize for Global Cultural Understanding, a leading international non-fiction prize worth GBP 25,000.

Das has been selected for this mind-boggling book 'Courting India: England, Mughal India and the Origins of Empire' while mixed African and Indian origin Manjapra has been selected for 'Black Ghost of Empire: The Long Death of Slavery and the Failure of Emancipation'.

The award will be given for the 11th time this year. Although it can be given to person of any origin, the only condition is that his or her work should be nominated in UK with English language. It welcomes the world culture and its ways.

"We were greatly impressed by the exceptional quality of writing in this year's shortlist and the ability of the authors to unearth extraordinary new discoveries and to find new perspectives on old perceptions," said Professor Charles Tripp, Fellow of the British Academy and chair of the 2023 jury.

40-year-old Ms Das is an English professor of Early Modern Literature and Culture at the University of Oxford. She studied at Jadavpur University in Kolkata and later shifted to UK.

40-year-old Manjapra is a professor of History and Global Studies at Northeastern University in Boston.

The winner of the GBP 25,000 prize will be announced at an awards ceremony in London on October 31, after receiving GBP 1,000.

The judges of the panel for the British Academy Book Prize for Global Cultural Understanding include Professor Madawi Al-Rasheed FBA, Visiting Professor at Middle East Centre, London School of Economics; Professor Rebecca Earle, food historian and History Professor at University of Warwick; Fatima Manji, award-winning broadcaster and Professor Gary Younge Hon, the award-winning author, broadcaster and Professor of Sociology at University of Manchester.