Description
Not the vacuum between storms. Nor / the retreating coil of waves before a tsunami. / Not hole, groove, trench or cliff edge. It is / unsevered. Detached from freefall. It is a place, / a space, and receptacle too. Grounded. Into which you go.
Shikhandin’s poems are little gemstones that hold intensely personal emotions in their core. They also light up the readers’ connection to all things mortal, all limbs, all minds that leave us with immortal wisdom.
— Nabina Das, author of Sanskarnama
Shikhandin writes about complex emotions with courage, craft and compassion. The lyrical beauty and vividness of certain stanzas makes one pause. After Grief is a book with dignity, honesty and flickering beauty that one will return to time and again.
— Priya Sarukkai Chabria, author of Sing to Life
Shikhandin is the pen name of an Indian writer who writes for adults and children. Her published books, as Shikhandin, include Impetuous Women (Penguin-Random House), Immoderate Men (Speaking Tiger), and Vibhuti Cat (Duckbill-Penguin-Random House). Her other children’s stories have been published in anthologies from Puffin and HarperCollins. A novel and a short story collection were published previously. Shikhandin’s honours include, runner-up George Floyd Short Story Contest 2020 (UK); Pushcart nominee by Aeolian Harp (USA) 2019; Pushcart nominee by Cha: An Asian Literary Journal (Hong Kong) 2011; winner 2017 Children First Contest curated by Duckbill, in association with Parag an initiative of Tata Trust; first prize Brilliant Flash Fiction Contest 2019 (USA); runner-up Erbacce Poetry Prize (UK); winner 35th Moon Prize (Writing in a Woman’s Voice: USA); first runner-up The DNA-OoP Short Story Contest 2016 (India), second prize India Currents Katha Short Story Contest 2016 (USA); first prize Anam Cara Short Fiction Competition 2012 (Ireland); longlist Bridport Poetry Prize 2006 (UK); finalist Aesthetica Poetry Contest 2010 (UK). Shikhandin’s poetry and prose have been widely published worldwide in journals and anthologies.
Penguin page: penguin.co.in/book_author/shikhandin/
Amazon page: amazon.com/author/shikhandin
Facebook: facebook.com/AuthorShikhandin/
Instagram: instagram.com/writershikhandin/
Twitter: @Shikhandintweet