Salma

Bio

Salma is a well-known name to readers of contemporary Tamil literature. With two volumes of poetry collections, a short story collection and two novels- several of which have been translated to several languages, Salma has made her mark as a distinctive literary voice. Lakshmi Holmstrom’s English translation of her novel, entitled The Hour Past Midnight, was shortlisted for the Crossword Book Prize and long listed for man asian prize DSC Award. Her second novel Manaamiyangal will be published in English by Penguin Random House and her short story collection Saabam by Speaking Tiger.

Salma has been the recipient of several awards and honours, and has also been a special invitee to several book festivals and seminars. She was the only representative of Tamil literature whenthe University of Chicago organized a two-day seminar, as part of the annual Norman J. Cutler Conference, to discuss her literary works.

Besides being a woman of letters, Salma has also been a committed public servant. She was the elected President of the Ponnampatti Panchayat, 2001-2006. She also served as the Chairman of the Social Welfare Board, Govt. of Tamil Nadu, during which time she was instrumental in establishing several welfare schemes, including some landmark ones directed to the transgender (aravani/hijra) community in Tamil nadu.