The Gratiaen Trust, in partnership with the John Keells Foundation and the British Council, has revealed the longlist for the 33rd Annual Gratiaen Prize — Sri Lanka’s most prestigious literary award for English-language creative writing.
This year’s competition drew a record number of entries. The judging panel selected 12 works spanning fiction, poetry, and creative prose.
The longlist
The 12 longlisted works are: @#$%! Daham by Aneesha Ansar, Chameleon Silva by Keith Jayasekera, Dear Father: The Refugee by Alan de Costa, Divergent Among my Neurons by Gaveen Prabhasara, Gallivanting by Ciara Mandulee Mendis, God, Bangles and a Constitution by Anuththara Ekeli, In the Curve of the Smile by Uvini Atukorala, Reading Palms by Oshanthaka Cabraal, The Department of Chosen Ones by Thisuri Wanniarachchi, The Son and the Lover by Visakesa Chandrasekaram, Time is a Paper Crane and Other Stories by Eshana Ranasinghe, and To Hear You Breathe by Sajla Anees.
Judging panel
The panel is chaired by V.V. Ganeshananthan, whose novel Brotherless Night won the 2024 Women’s Prize for Fiction. She is joined by Dinidu Karunanayake of Elon University and Azara Jaleel, editor-in-chief of ARTRA Magazine.
“The longlisted works demonstrate ambitious scope, startling intimacy, global perspectives, and strong, diverse voices,” Ganeshananthan said.
The shortlist will be announced on May 4, with the winner revealed on June 6.
