Tamil writer CS Lakshmi, who writes under the pseudonym Ambai, has won the 2023 Shakti Bhatt Body of Work Prize. Writer Sharanya Manivannan, who was on the jury, said, “Ambai’s writing has a powerfully resonant quality that speaks to the very intimate emotions and experiences of one’s life, while also being razor-edged, trenchant in its renderings of collective and systemic realities,”
Lakshmi responded to the news by saying, “I began writing at the age of 16 and I am going to be 79 next month. So my worldview has surely changed, not in terms of its fundamental aspects but in terms of its practical aspects. Girls of my generation who grew up in the post-independence period were deeply drawn towards Gandhi, Vivekananda and the concepts of sacrifice and service. We were extremely idealistic. This idealism has not changed for me but I have understood how to navigate my way through all the hurdles without giving up on what I set up as my goals. Alongside writing fiction she has worked as a researcher and teacher. She is also the co-founder of SPARROW, (Sound and Picture Archives for Research on Women) India’s first archive dedicated to archiving women’s writings and visual and oral records.
Earlier, CS Lakshmi was declared the recipient of the 2023 Tata Literature Live! Lifetime Achievement Award. She will be presented with the award at the Tata Literature Live! literary festival on October 28 in Mumbai. Harish Bhat, the brand custodian of Tata Sons said, “...Her voice embodies courage in challenging the stereotyping of women, brims with empathy, unwavering conviction, and a delightful sense of humour, spanning diverse forms, including research, translations, poetry, and both novels and short stories. Her literary contributions not only push the boundaries of storytelling in regional languages but also enrich the global literary landscape, offering a wealth of profound experiences.”
