The Crossword Book Award (formerly known as the Crossword Book Award (1998–2003), the Hutch Crossword Book Award (2004–07), the Vodafone Crossword Book Award (2008–10), the Economist Crossword Book Award (2011–13), Raymond & Crossword Book Award (2014–present))Vodafone Crossword Book Award
at

Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...

. is an Indian book award hosted by Crossword Bookstores and their sponsors. The Award was instituted in 1998 by Indian book retailer

Crossword A crossword is a word puzzle that usually takes the form of a square or a rectangular grid of white- and black-shaded squares. The goal is to fill the white squares with letters, forming words or phrases, by solving clues which lead to the ans ...

with the intention of competing with The Booker Prize, Commonwealth Writers' Prize or The Pulitzer Prize.

History and administration

According to the website of the Crossword Bookstore, :"While several Indian writers have won awards abroad, we had observed that there was no equivalent award in India. We therefore decided to take on the role of encouraging and promoting good Indian writing and instituted the Book Awards, in 1998. It is the only Indian award that not only recognizes and rewards good writing but also actively promotes the authors and their books." Nominations are on the basis of sales as tracked by Crossword, and the eventual winners are chosen based on a public poll that's partly online and partly real world (voting at Crossword outlets). As of 2018, the awards consist of (3 lakh or $3,000) for winners in the jury award category, and (1 lakh or $1,500) for winners in the popular choice category. The award was initially for a single work of fiction by an Indian citizen. In 2000, an additional prize was offered for an Indian writing in any Indian language translated into English. There was no award between 2001–03. Starting in 2004 the award was sponsored by

Hutch Essar Vodafone India (formerly Vodafone Essar Ltd, Huchison Essar Ltd) was the Indian subsidiary of UK-based Vodafone Group plc and was a provider of telecommunications services in India with its operational head office in Mumbai. As of March 2018, V ...

an Indian telecommunications company and called the Hutch Crossword Book Award. Starting in 2006 additional categories of a nonfiction prize and a popular award, voted on by the public, were added. Starting in 2008, Hutch Essar was purchased by English telecommunications company

Vodafone Group Vodafone Group plc () is a British multinational telecommunications company. Its registered office and global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire, England. It predominantly operates services in Asia, Africa, Europe, and Oceania. , Vodafon ...

and the award was called Vodafone Crossword Book Award. Beginning in 2011 through 2013, it was sponsored by ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...

'' in association with Principal Mutual Funds and Standard Chartered, and renamed the Economist Crossword Book Award. Beginning in 2014, it was sponsored by the

Raymond Group Raymond Group is an Indian branded fabric and fashion retailer, incorporated in 1925. It produces suiting fabric, with a capacity of producing 31 million meters of wool and wool-blended fabrics. The group owns apparel brands like Raymond, Ra ...

Winners

Previous winners.

References

{{Reflist, 30em

External links

Crossword Book AwardCrossword BookstoresCrossword Bookstores
on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...

Indian literary awards Awards established in 1998 Translation awards 1998 establishments in India