New India Foundation Shifts Book Fellowship to Annual Schedule

Starting this year, the New India Foundation Book Fellowship will be awarded annually. This change aligns with the foundation's goal to better support nonfiction writers exploring post-1947 India. The fellowship offers financial support, mentorship, and community access, responding to a growing interest in nonfiction narratives.

The New India Foundation Book Fellowship, traditionally awarded biennially, will transition to being granted each year beginning this cycle. This adjustment aims to further reinforce its mission to support writers crafting nonfiction narratives about India.

Niraja Gopal Jayal, a member of the governing board, described the shift to an annual fellowship as an essential evolution for the program. "We have always believed in the importance of serious nonfiction for India's self-understanding and wish to enhance our support to writers consistently," she stated.

The fellowship provides recipients with a significant monthly stipend, extensive editorial assistance, mentorship, and integration into a community of writers and intellectuals. Fellow board member Srinath Raghavan highlighted the increase in quality applications received as indicative of nonfiction's rising significance in engaging with India's historical changes since independence. "An annual fellowship cycle will help us nurture this field further," he added.

The New India Foundation, besides the Book Fellowship, also runs a Translation Fellowship and the Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay NIF Book Prize. Over 20 years, nearly 40 nonfiction books, including political biographies, cultural histories, and memoirs, have been supported, each delving into facets of India's journey post-1947.