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Raghu Karnad

ラグフ・カルナッド

Raghu Karnad

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
Bengaluru (Bangalore), India
Nationality
India
Languages
English
Residence History
Bengaluru (Bangalore), India → New Delhi, India → United States (study)

Career

Occupations
Journalist, Writer
Active Years
2008-
Influenced By
Girish Karnad

Education

Swarthmore College
Country: United States
Spent a semester at the American University in Cairo during studies
St Cross College, University of Oxford
Contemporary India
Degree: MSc
Period: 2007-2008
Year of Graduation: 2008
Country: United Kingdom
Completed an MSc in Contemporary India in 2008

Awards

Windham–Campbell Literature Prize (Non-Fiction)
2019
Work: Farthest Field: An Indian Story of the Second World War
Category: ノンフィクション
Organization: Yale University Beinecke Library (Windham–Campbell Foundation)
Result: 受賞
Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puraskar
2016
Work: Farthest Field: An Indian Story of the Second World War
Category: 英語部門
Organization: Sahitya Akademi
Result: 受賞
Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting Grant
2018
Work: The Diverging Paths of Two Young Women Foretell the Fate of a Tribe in India (published in The New Yorker)
Organization: Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting
Result: 助成（Grant）
NYPL Cullman Fellowship
2022
Organization: Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers, New York Public Library
Result: フェロー（2022–23）
Financial Times - Bodley Head Essay Competition (inaugural)
2012
Work: Everybody's Friend: Looking for the Second World War in India's North-East
Category: エッセイ
Organization: Financial Times / Bodley Head
Result: 受賞
Lorenzo Natali Journalism Prize
2008
Work: Air, Water, Earth and the Sins of the Powerful
Category: ジャーナリズム
Organization: European Commission
Result: 受賞
Press Institute of India National Award for Reporting on the Victims of Armed Conflict
2008
Work: The Hunting Party Returns
Category: ジャーナリズム
Organization: Press Institute of India
Result: 受賞
Hessell-Tiltman Prize (shortlisted)
2016
Work: Farthest Field: An Indian Story of the Second World War
Organization: Hessell-Tiltman Prize
Result: ショートリスト

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Everybody's Friend

2013 Non-fiction (essay / long-form reportage)

A long-form essay that preceded Farthest Field, exploring memory and the search for World War II histories in India's northeast.

HistoryMemoryWar

Farthest Field: An Indian Story of the Second World War

2015 Non-fiction (history)

A narrative non-fiction work that uses the author's family histories to explore India's role in World War II, combining personal testimony and archival research to illuminate overlooked stories.

War historyColonialismPersonal memory and history
Translations
  • Marathi translation (2015)

Bibliography

  • Everybody's Friend. Random House. 2013.
  • Farthest Field – An Indian Story of the Second World War. William Collins. 2015.

Adaptations

  • Netflix documentary (consultant): Bad Boy Billionaires: India

Translations of Works

  • Farthest Field — Marathi translation (Rajhans Prakashan, 2015)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Narrative non-fictionBlend of reportage and narrative history
Recurring Motifs
Re-examining history through personal historiesImpact of colonialism and warSocial justice and marginalized voices

Legacy

Raghu Karnad is recognized as a journalist and writer who carefully explores Indian history, politics, and social issues. His book Farthest Field brought overlooked perspectives on war history to wider attention and earned literary prizes and research fellowships.

Archives

  • New York Public Library Cullman Center (fellowship affiliation)

In Popular Culture

  • Consulted on the Netflix documentary 'Bad Boy Billionaires: India'

Trivia

  • He is the son of playwright and actor Girish Karnad.
  • He was part of the founding team of The Wire, an independent Indian news platform.
  • While studying, he spent a semester at the American University in Cairo and reportedly met Yasser Arafat.
  • He has hosted the podcast 'Friend of the Court'.