Jahnavi is an Indian writer originally from Assam and now based in Bangalore, where she works as a doctor. Next Door, her 2008 collection of short stories, received widespread critical acclaim and her first novel, Rebirth (2011), was shortlisted for the Man Asian Literary Prize 2011. She read and discussed her work with writers Jeet Thayll, Nilanjana Roy and Rana Dasgupta in a Commonwealth Writers event at the Oxford Bookshop in New Delhi.
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Rebirth
(2011) – this tale of contemporary Bangalore is an intimate monologue of a mother to her unborn child.
Barua discusses Rebirth: the idea ‘slipped insidiously into my mind as I looked at women around me – at their struggles, dreams and aspirations’.
Storyteller of the Red River – Jahnavi talks about her childhood in Assam, literary influences and the short form with journalist and cultural activist Aiyushman Dutta here.
Birdsong – read Jahnavi’s short story about bird watching, freedom and divorce.
