--- description: Indian author Arundhati Roy was selected by PEN English for telling "urgent stories of injustice with wit and beauty." title: Arundhati Roy wins PEN Pinter Prize Amid Prosecution Threat image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2cf6438ae9905c93/698a5830e6e84a72d42b3186/Arundhati-Roy-literary.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [United Kingdom](/tag/united-kingdom/) ## United Kingdom Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Arundhati Roy Wins PEN Pinter Prize Amid Indian Prosecution Threat  by [Armani Syed](/author/armani-syed/)  ## Armani Syed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Syed was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau. Jun 27, 2024 12:22 PM CUT  Arundhati Roy, Booker Prize-winning author, during the Hay Festival on June 2, 2019, in Hay-on-Wye, Wales. Arundhati Roy, Booker Prize-winning author, during the Hay Festival on June 2, 2019, in Hay-on-Wye, Wales.David Levenson—Getty Images  by [Armani Syed](/author/armani-syed/)  ## Armani Syed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Syed was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau. Jun 27, 2024 12:22 PM CUT Indian writer Arundhati Roy has been awarded the PEN Pinter prize, two weeks after Indian authorities approved legal action over [political comments](https://time.com/6322645/indian-author-arundhati-roy-2010-kashmir-speech/ "undefined") she made 14 years ago. The novelist said she is “delighted” to accept the prestigious literary award,[ in a statement shared](https://www.englishpen.org/posts/campaigns/arundhati-roy-awarded-pen-pinter-prize-2024/ "undefined") via a press release by PEN English. “I wish Harold Pinter were with us today to write about the almost incomprehensible turn the world is taking. Since he isn't, some of us must do our utmost to try to fill his shoes,” Roy, 62, said after winning the prize. The accolade was founded by English PEN in 2009 in tribute to the late playwright Harold Pinter, and is annually awarded to writers of "outstanding literary merit" who cast their [“unflinching” gaze](https://www.englishpen.org/prizes/pen-pinter-prize/ "undefined") on the world. Roy was selected as the 2024 recipient by English PEN chair Ruth Borthwick, actor Khalid Abdalla, and writer Roger Robinson. Roy, who became the first Indian writer to win The Booker Prize in 1997 for her novel _The God of Small Things_, was praised by Borthwick for writing "urgent stories of injustice with wit and beauty." "While India remains an important focus, she is truly an internationalist thinker, and her powerful voice is not to be silenced," Borthwick added. Roy is set to receive the PEN Pinter award during an Oct. 10 ceremony at the British Library in London. She joins a list of literary giants who have also won the award, including Malorie Blackman, Margaret Atwood, and [Salman Rushdie.](https://time.com/6270878/salman-rushdie-interview-time100/ "undefined") Known for being a prominent activist and human rights advocate, Roy has become a polarizing critic of[ Prime Minister Modi,](https://time.com/6985447/india-election-results-modi-bjp/ "undefined") and the Indian government at large for its policies. On June 14, VK Saxena, Delhi's most senior official and a BJP politician, [sanctioned the prosecution](https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/delhi-lieutenant-governor-grants-prosecution-sanction-against-arundhati-roy-under-uapa/article68289901.ece "undefined") of Roy under its anti-terror laws for public comments she made at an event in 2010 about Indian-administered [Kashmir, widely regarded as a disputed territory](https://time.com/4423531/kashmir-india-conflict-srinagar/ "undefined"). During _Azadi - The Only Way Ahead_, a conference in New Delhi, Roy recalled being asked by a journalist to answer if Kashmir was an “integral part of India.” Roy said it [“never” has been](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jROtLcvh2qY "undefined"). “However aggressively and however often you want to ask me that, even the Indian government has accepted that it is not an integral part of India,” she responded. The recent complaint was originally brought by a right-wing Kashmiri Hindu activist against speakers at a conference titled “Freedom — the Only Way.” Roy was accused with two other co-defendants, Syed Ali Shah Geelani, a Kashmiri separatist leader, and Syed Abdul Rahman Geelani, a professor, who have both since died, of jeopardizing “public peace and security” in advocating for the separation of Kashmir from India. The move towards prosecuting Roy has been widely viewed as an attempt to silence the author for her criticism. More than [200 Indian academics](https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1204054-open-letter-in-india-calls-for-withdrawal-of-go-ahead-to-prosecute-arundhati-roy "undefined"), activists and writers have published an open letter urging the government to withdraw its sanctioning of legal action. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6992921/arundhati-roy-pen-pinter-prize-winner/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6992921/arundhati-roy-pen-pinter-prize-winner/"},"headline":"Arundhati Roy Wins PEN Pinter Prize Amid Indian Prosecution Threat","datePublished":"2024-06-27T12:22:38.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T17:51:22.643Z","description":"Indian author Arundhati Roy was selected by PEN English for telling \"urgent stories of injustice with wit and beauty.\"","url":"https://time.com/6992921/arundhati-roy-pen-pinter-prize-winner/","keywords":["United Kingdom","Books","News Desk"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2cf6438ae9905c93/698a5830e6e84a72d42b3186/Arundhati-Roy-literary.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Armani Syed","jobTitle":"Syed was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau.","url":"https://time.com/author/armani-syed/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2cf6438ae9905c93/698a5830e6e84a72d42b3186/Arundhati-Roy-literary.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"The Hay Festival 2019","caption":"The Hay Festival 2019","creditText":"David Levenson—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/united-kingdom/","name":"United Kingdom"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/6992921/arundhati-roy-pen-pinter-prize-winner/","name":"Arundhati Roy Wins PEN Pinter Prize Amid Indian Prosecution Threat"}}]}] ```