MUMBAI : Padma Viswanathan, a Canadian-American writer of Indian origin, has secured a spot on the 2026 International Booker Prize shortlist for her English translation of On Earth As It Is Beneath, a Portuguese-language novella by Brazilian author Ana Paula Maia.
Described by the judging panel as a “brutal, haunting and hypnotic” work, the novella is set in a remote Brazilian penal colony, exploring the fragile boundaries between justice and cruelty. Judges praised its stark narrative, noting how it builds a powerful moral universe with minimal elements, a prison, a handful of men, and the rituals of punishment that define their existence. The panel, which includes Indian novelist Nilanjana S. Roy, highlighted the book’s unflinching and relentless storytelling, likening it to a dark fable on power and civilisation.
The annual prize, valued at GBP 50,000, is equally shared between the author and translator. Each shortlisted title is awarded GBP 5,000, also split between both contributors. Last year’s award went to Kannada writer-activist Banu Mushtaq and translator Deepa Bhasthi for Heart Lamp, a short story collection that went on to achieve significant commercial success, selling out rapidly in the UK.
This year’s shortlist reflects strong female representation, with five of the six authors and four of the six translators being women. The nominees collectively represent eight countries, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, France, Germany, Taiwan, the UK, and the United States.
Chair of the judging panel, author Natasha Brown, noted that the selected works span narratives across the past century, capturing themes of heartbreak, brutality, and isolation, while ultimately leaving a powerful and energising impact on readers.
Other shortlisted titles include The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran by Shida Bazyar, She Who Remains by Rene Karabash, The Director by Daniel Kehlmann, Taiwan Travelogue by Yáng Shuāng-zi, and The Witch by Marie Ndiaye, each translated into English from their original languages.
Padma Viswanathan, a Canadian-American writer of Indian origin, has been shortlisted for the 2026 International Booker Prize for her English translation of Ana Paula Maia’s Portuguese novella On Earth As It Is Beneath. Set in a remote Brazilian penal colony, the work has been hailed as brutal, haunting and hypnotic, exploring justice, cruelty and power with stark, fable-like intensity.