Anjum Hasan

Who is Anjum Hasan?

Anjum Hasan is an Indian poet and novelist. She was born in Shillong, Meghalaya and currently lives in Bangalore, Karnataka, India.

Street on the Hill was her debut collection of poems. Her debut novel Lunatic in my Head was shortlisted for the Crossword Book Award 2007. Set in Shillong, a picturesque hill-station in north-east India, in the early 1990s, the novel weaves together the stories of its three main characters, ranging from an IAS aspirant who is obsessed with Pink Floyd to a college teacher struggling to complete her PhD and longing to find love. The novel has been described by Siddhartha Deb as 'haunting and lyrical' and as acquiring a 'lyrical intensity'.

Her second novel titled Neti, Neti was longlisted for the 2008 Man Asian Literary Prize and shortlisted for The Hindu Best Fiction Award in 2010. Her third novel, Difficult Pleasures, was shortlisted for The Hindu Literary Prize.

She has also contributed poems, articles and short stories to various national and international publications.

She is currently Books Editor for The Caravan.