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Split Screens
Love, Revolution & Other Fictions
Speakers
A daring literary experiment, explored through the eyes of the author herself!
This evening authors Meena Kandasamy and Sam Arni will delve into the innovative split-screen structure of Kandasamy’s revolutionary book, Exquisite Cadavers. Together, they will discuss how experimentation of form confronts literary expectations, challenges the marginalization of writers from the Global South, and connects the intimate landscapes of relationships to broader public histories.
Unlike a painter’s or potter’s studio where you can watch art come alive, the writer’s creative process is usually hidden, mysterious, almost alchemical. Exquisite Cadavers is Meena Kandasamy’s take on the novel-in-the-margins format. The story of Maya and Karim – lovers navigating the complexities of migration, racial identity, and political uncertainty in Brexit-era London – unfold only on half the pages. Juxtaposed with Kandasamy’s candid reflections on her own life experiences, the book provides a unique view into a writer’s process of creation.
Join us for a disarmingly honest conversation on polemics, protests, and power.
Speakers
Meena Kandasamy
Meena Kandasamy is a poet, writer, translator, anti-caste activist and academic based in India. Her extensive corpus includes two poetry collections, Touch (2006) and Ms Militancy (2010), as well as three novels, The Gypsy Goddess (2014), The Women’s Prize shortlisted When I Hit You (2017) and Exquisite Cadavers (2019). In 2022, she was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature (FRSL) and was also awarded the PEN Hermann Kesten Prize for her writing and work as a ‘fearless fighter for democracy, human rights and the free word.’ Her latest published work is Tomorrow Someone Will Arrest You, a collection of her political poetry written in the last decade.
Samhita Arni
When she was eight, Samhita Arni started writing and illustrating her first book. The Mahabharata – A Child’s View went on to be published in seven language editions and sell 50,000 copies worldwide. Samhita’s second book, Sita’s Ramayana, a graphic novel developed in collaboration with Patua artist Moyna Chitrakar, was on the New York Times Bestseller list for Graphic Novels. Her third book, is The Missing Queen. Samhita was also head scriptwriter for the first season of ‘The Defenders’, a TV series produced by Tolo TV in Kabul, Afghanistan. The Prince is her fourth book.
