Prajwal Parajuly (né Sharma; born 24 October 1984) is an Indian writer whose works focus on

Nepali Nepali or Nepalese may refer to : Concerning Nepal * Anything of, from, or related to Nepal * Nepali people, citizens of Nepal * Nepali language, an Indo-Aryan language found in Nepal, the current official national language and a language spoken ...

-speaking people and their culture. Parajuly's works include the short-story collection '' The Gurkha's Daughter'' and novel ''

Land Where I Flee ''Land Where I Flee'' is a novel by an Nepali speaking Indian writer Prajwal Parajuly. It was published on November 14, 2013 by Quercus. It is the first novel and the second book of the author who had previously published a collection of short st ...

''.

Early life

Parajuly grew up in the

Gangtok Gangtok is a city, municipality, the capital and the largest populated place of the Indian state of Sikkim. It is also the headquarters of the Gangtok District. Gangtok is in the eastern Himalayan range, at an elevation of . The city's populat ...

Sikkim Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Province No. 1 of Nepal in the west and West Bengal in the south. Sikkim is also close to the Siligu ...

region of northeastern India. His father is Indian and his mother Nepalese. He was educated at

Truman State University Truman State University (TSU or Truman) is a public university in Kirksville, Missouri. It had 4,225 enrolled students in the fall of 2021 pursuing degrees in 52 undergraduate and 11 graduate programs. The university is named for U.S. Preside ...

Kirksville, Missouri Kirksville is the county seat and most populous city in Adair County, Missouri. Located in Benton Township, its population was 17,530 at the 2020 census. Kirksville is home to two colleges: Truman State University and A.T. Still University. ...

, and the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the world's second-oldest university in contin ...

. Before committing to a writing career, he worked as an advertising executive at ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, th ...

''.

Career

In September 2011, Parajuly became the youngest Indian author to be offered a two-book, multi-country deal. He was signed by

Quercus An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ' ...

. He published his first book in 2012: a short story collection with the title ''The Gurkha's Daughter: Stories''. Describing and dramatizing the experiences of the Nepalese people and the Nepalese diaspora, his debut book was shortlisted for the 2013

Dylan Thomas Prize The Dylan Thomas Prize is a leading prize for young writers presented annually. The prize, named in honour of the Welsh writer and poet Dylan Thomas, brings international prestige and a remuneration of £30,000 (~$46,000). It is open to published ...

and longlisted for The Story Prize that same year. Parajuly's second book, the novel ''Land Where I Flee'', came out in 2013. It was an ''Independent on Sunday'' book of the year and a ''

Kansas City Star ''The Kansas City Star'' is a newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Star'' is most notable for its influence on the career of President Harry S. Truman and ...

'' best book of 2015. It was translated and published in French in 2020 and was nominated the same year for the Debut Novel Prize and a finalist for the

Émile Guimet Prize for Asian Literature The Émile Guimet Prize for Asian Literature (Le Prix Émile Guimet de littérature asiatique) is a French literary prize awarded for the first time in 2017, and annually thereafter. About the prize The jury is made up of staff from the Musée G ...

. He was the first writer-in-residence at The Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies in 2013. In 2016, Prajwal Parajuly was invited to be a judge for the Dylan Thomas Prize. Prajwal Parajuly has written for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

'', the ''

New Statesman The ''New Statesman'' is a British political and cultural magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first connected with Sidney and Beatrice Webb and other leading members o ...

'' and the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

Works

*'' The Gurkha's Daughter'', short story collection, released in December 2012. *''

'', novel, released in December 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parajuly, Prajwal 1984 births Indian male short story writers Indian writers Nepali-language writers from India Living people Truman State University alumni Indian Gorkhas Indian people of Nepalese descent Alumni of Kellogg College, Oxford