SRINAGAR: Kashmir author, Farah Bashir has bagged the best debut AutHer award 2022 for her hugely read and appreciated book, Rumours of Spring: A Girlhood in Kashmir.

Farah Bashir, the author of Rumours of Spring received the debut AutHer award 2022 on March 26, 2022.

There were eight entries in the category for best debut author for the year. Farah eventually bagged the award. “Author 𝐅𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐡 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐫 added a resplendent feather to her literary cap by winning the coveted @autherawards for her extraordinary debut novel, ‘𝐑𝐮𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠’,” the event managers tweeted on weekend. The book is non-fiction based on a girl’s individual memories about growing up in the early 1990s when militancy broke out in Kashmir.

The book was part of the award shortlist. The other three were A Death In Shonagachhi by Rijula Das, After I Was Raped by Urmi Bhattacharyya, and The Tale of The Horse by Yashaswini Chandra.

The award was constituted by JK Paper and The Times of India in 2018. The weekend event was its third edition. “The awards are a celebration of contributions of women authors who have, despite all the biases added value and creativity to this space,” the platform says. “We wish to acknowledge and award such women authors so that more and more women take up writing and pen that first story and feel proud of their of their accomplishment.”

The award is being conferred upon women writers in six categories – Popular Choice, Children’s Books, Best Author Debut, Best Author Non-fiction, Best Author Fiction, The winners go home with a trophy and one lakh rupees but a lot of appreciation.

Farah’s book earlier figures in the long list of two major literarily awards – Tatalitlive and Atta Galata Banglore LitFest.

“It was a surprise win because the competition was stiff,” Farah told Kashmir Life on phone from Delhi. “I hope with this recognition the coming-of-age story of young girls and women in conflict zones will reach more readers. May our children live in a world where we turn to reading and writing for the love of it and not to escape the brutality of war.”

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