Sindhu Rajasekaran is an author, academic and filmmaker. Her debut novel Kaleidoscopic Reflections was longlisted for the Crossword Book Award in 2011,[1] while her latest book of non-fiction is the best-selling Smashing the Patriarchy – A Guide for the 21st Century Indian Woman.[2] Sindhu's prose and poetry have appeared in internationally acclaimed literary magazines. She has also published a collection of short stories titled So I Let It Be; it released in 2019.[3]
She co-founded an independent film production company, Camphor Cinema, and produced the critically acclaimed Indo-British feature film Ramanujan,[4] based on the life and times of the mathematical genius Srinivasa Ramanujan.
Early life and education
editSindhu was born in Madras to IAS officer and Film Director Gnana Rajasekaran and Sakunthala Rajasekaran.[citation needed] She grew up in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Trained as an Electronics and Communications Engineer at Anna University, Sindhu received a master's degree in English from the University of Edinburgh.[citation needed]
A recipient of the Dean's Global Research Award at the University of Strathclyde, [5] Sindhu's research revolves around queer South Asian pasts, creative epistemologies & queer decolonial storytelling.
Literary works
editSindhu's debut novel Kaleidoscopic Reflections was longlisted for the Crossword Book Award in 2011.[6] The novel tells the tale of an inter-caste Tamil family, spanning five generations, and how their destiny is inextricably linked to the fate of India.[citation needed]
In her second book, So I Let It Be, the themes of love, loss of individuality, sexuality, and an overwhelmingly poignant and profound sense of saudade are explored. Stories from this collection have previously been featured in literary magazines. The Sacred Cow appeared in the internationally acclaimed Asia Literary Review.[7] The Routine was published in Elsewhere Lit.[8] Huffington Post[9] listed this story among 14 contemporary short stories that will spark your mind. Her short story Mountain of God was published in Kitaab.[10]
Sindhu's acclaimed third book, Smashing the Patriarchy, was published by Aleph Book Company in 2021. [11] Centred around the bold voices of millennials and Gen Zs, Smashing the Patriarchy explores how young Indian women from diverse backgrounds ingeniously overcome the patriarchy in their everyday lives.
Her poems Meghdooth and Let Me Molest You have been published by Muse India as part of an anthology of poetry,[12] and So I Let It Be and Mermaid[13] were published in The Dance of the Peacock by Hidden Brook Press, Canada in 2013.[14]
She has contributed articles on politics and culture to the Scottish magazine Bella Caledonia [15] and India's Impact. She was one among the youngest writers invited to participate and speak at the Hyderabad Literary Festival in 2013.
Theatre and film
editSindhu co-wrote and acted in a play titled The Tiara Gynaelogues, staged at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2011.[16]
She performed spoken word for the premier performance groups Illicit Ink[17] and Writers' Bloc in the UK.
With Ramanujan Sindhu forayed into the world of screenwriting and film production; she is the Assistant Scriptwriter[18] of the film and also the Producer of the film. She set up the production house, Camphor Cinema, with her husband in 2012.[19]
Critically acclaimed, Ramanujan won an award for Best Production at Norway's NTFF in 2015, the Ananda Vikadan Best Production Award and V4 Entertainers Film Awards. The Rashtrapati Bhavan invited Camphor Cinema to specially screen the film for the President of India, who felicitated the producers at the event [20]
Personal life
editSindhu is bisexual. She has written widely about gender and sexuality, writing about her personal experiences in Gaysi, [21] Room and in her book Smashing the Patriarchy. Sindhu is a jury member of the inaugural Rainbow Awards for Literature and Journalism [22] – instituted to honour queer literature and journalism in India.
References
edit- ^ "Crossword Book Award Longlist announced". IBNLive.com. 6 May 2011. Archived from the original on 3 May 2014. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
- ^ Sharma, Saloni (4 December 2021). "'Smashing the Patriarchy' argues for a new kind of feminism in India, away from older models". Scroll.in. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
- ^ "So I Let It Be by Sindhu Rajasekaran". Pegasuspublishers.com. 28 February 2019.
- ^ Krishnamachari, Suganthy (5 July 2013). "Saluting brilliance". The Hindu. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
- ^ "PhD Creative Writing".
- ^ "'Crossword Book Award Longlist announced'". 5 May 2011.
- ^ "'Asia Literary Review'".
- ^ "'Elsewhere Lit- A journey of literature and art'".
- ^ "'14 Contemporary Short Stories That Will Spark Your Mind'".
- ^ "'Short Story: Mountain of God'".
- ^ "Smashing the Patriarchy". Aleph Book Company. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
- ^ "Sindhu Rajasekaran". museindia.com. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
- ^ "Two in the Bush". 10 March 2011. Archived from the original on 3 May 2014. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
- ^ Dance of the Peacock. Canada: Hidden Brook Press. 2013. ISBN 978-1-927725-00-9.
- ^ "'What Scottish independence means for Asia, for India'".
- ^ "Literary Events in Edinburgh". cityofliterature.com. Archived from the original on 3 May 2014. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
- ^ "'FEATURE – Illicit Ink'".
- ^ "Ramanujan shoots of the film at Cambridge and London". indianoon.com. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
- ^ "Camphor Cinema Presents Their First Film Ramanujan". boxofficeindia.co.in. Archived from the original on 20 August 2013. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
- ^ "'Prez Pranab Wowed by Ramanujan's Story'". 30 March 2013.
- ^ "Gaysi".
- ^ "Inaugural Rainbow Awards to honour queer literature and journalism".