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Indian-origin translator on Booker Prize shortlist
If it wins, the 101-page On Earth As It Is Beneath will be the first book from a Brazilian writer to take the prize.
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Staff Reporter - Tue, 31, Mar 2026
- 14:04 EDT
- 20
Padma Viswanathan reading at the 2015 Neustadt Festival. / Wikipedia
Indian-origin writer and translator Padma Viswanathan has been shortlisted for the 2026 International Booker Prize, one of the world’s most prestigious honors for translated fiction.
According to the list released on March 31, she earned the recognition for her English translation of the Portuguese novel On Earth As It Is Beneath by Brazilian author Ana Paula Maia.
Also Read:Banu Mushtaq’s Heart Lamp wins 2025 International Booker Prize
The book is among six other works selected for the annual prize, which honors a single work of fiction translated into English and published in the U.K. or Ireland. Each shortlisted title will receive 5,000 pounds, split between the author and translator.
Judges described the novel as a stark exploration of power and corruption. “A brutal, haunting and hypnotic novella set in a remote Brazilian penal colony where the boundaries between justice and cruelty collapse. Spare, unflinching and relentless," the panel said.
Natasha Brown, International Booker Prize 2026 Chair of judges, said, "Our shortlist offers readers a six-stop tour of highlights from the world of translated fiction. With narratives that capture moments from across the past century, these books reverberate with history. While there’s heartbreak, brutality, and isolation among these stories, their lasting effect is energising. Rereading each book, we judges found hope, insight and burning humanity – along with unforgettable characters to whom I’m sure readers will return again and again."
ALSO READ: Nilanjana S Roy named jury for 2026 International Booker Prize
Viswanathan, 58, is a full professor of creative writing at the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville. She teaches in the MFA Program in Creative Writing and Translation. A playwright, novelist and memoirist, her novels have been published in eight countries.
The 50,000-pound prize is divided equally between the author and translator. Last year’s award went to Kannada writer-activist Banu Mushtaq and translator Deepa Bhasthi for the short story collection ‘Heart Lamp.’
The winner will be announced May 19 at a ceremony at Tate Modern in London.
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