In conversation
Ruvani Ranasinha & Mohammed Hanif in conversation with Chitra Ramaswamy
In 2022, the writer Hanif Kureishi, best known for his novel the Buddha of Suburbia, suffered a terrible accident which left him with paralysing spinal injuries. He has continued to write and has since published Shattered, a memoir, about the experience. Chitra Ramaswamy talks to Ruvani Ranasinha, author of a recent biography of Kureishi, and the novelist Mohammed Hanif about Kureishi’s extraordinary writing and career.’
2nd April, 2025
'Hanif Kureishi’s extraordinary writing career'
Ideas are like rabbits
‘Ideas are like rabbits, you get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you will have a dozen.’
Soundsystem as pedagogy
'You left recalibrated. Heartbeat altered. Shoulders lowered.'
Bad Signal
'All language use can be seen as extending a hand; words and their corresponding meanings are always about relationships'
The Authenticator
Painful truths hidden in the shadows of history
Minor Black Figures
Making art without looking over your shoulder
Hedda
An imperfect description of humanity
Free Will
Will Harris reads his poem, 'Free Will'. Directed by Matthew Thompson and commissioned by the Adrian Brinkerhoff Poetry Foundation.
Half Written Love Letter
Selina Nwulu reads her poem, 'Half Written Love Letter'. Directed by Matthew Thompson and commissioned by the Adrian Brinkerhoff Poetry Foundation.
Illuminating, in-depth conversations between writers.
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The series that tells the true-life stories of migration to the UK.
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Nine writers explore the elusive emotional truth behind narratives and storytelling.
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