Announcing the Serai Fellows, 2024
If it’s been a while since we wrote in, it’s because we have been so busy wading through the incredible number and quality of applications we received for the Serai Residency this year! What began as a simple dream quickly snowballed into over 350 applications from 25 countries— a mammoth but incredibly rewarding task for all involved. It took several jury members, multiple rounds of reading and conversations, and some really difficult decisions, but we finally have our 4 fellows for this year!
But first, a glimpse at the diversity of the applications for this year. We have long wanted to work with creating a South-South conversation, and we couldn’t be more thrilled with this list— thank you to each and every person who applied. It may be a cliche, but your applications truly gave us hope and amazed us with their depth, diversity, and beauty. We are now more determined than ever to try to raise the resources to host more and more fellows each year — to build together towards our dream of a just and joyful world.
Without further ado, then, the 2024 Serai fellows are:
Big congratulations to each of you— we are so excited to be in conversation with all of you very soon!
At the same time, we also wanted to take a moment to shout out to everyone on our incredible shortlist— folks who narrowly missed this opportunity, but whose work and worlds deeply inspired us. Our jury had a really hard time, and lots of long conversations, as we worked on our final list or fellows, but each of these projects bears mentioning in our opinion. Our hope and our dream now is to be able to raise the resources to host many more fellows next year!
Adil Rashid, India, an author working on a novel set on the Dal Lake in Kashmir
Amisa Rashid Ahmed, Kenya, a psychologist working on a mental health curriculum for Sudanese youth affected by war and displacement
Drishana Kalita, India, working on Assamese folk puppetry traditions
Jaishree Kumar, India, filmmaker, working on a documentary about two trans women in Delhi
Jyoti Nisha, India, a multidisciplinary Bahujan writer and filmmaker in India exploring the question “Who Gets Love in Popular Culture?”
Levy Pooe, South Africa, a visual artist working on beauty, leisure, and joy in the social imaginations of Black people.
Malavika Bhatia, India, who uses mushrooms and fungi as a way to understand and explore ecologies, working on a project around “Greater than Human Consciousness”.
Mohammad Azhar Wani, India, a translator working on Akhtar Mohiuddin’s work, and wishing to bring the into the limelight Kashmiri literature that has been lost under the decades of armed conflict
Payal Chakraborty, India, exploring the impact of human made climate chaos through her art, specifically her engravings on palm leaves.
Potsangbam Linthoingambi Chanu, India, working on a semi-autobiographical novel that brings together Manipuri folklore, political unrest, and personal narrative.
Sharanya Manivannan, India, working on a new non-fiction book.
Shruti Tharayil, India, on creating an educational platform that centers on experiential courses about food within a decolonial Indian context.
Tran Thi Bao Tran, Vietnam, working on a series of poems to critically explore popular myths and legends in Vietnam, with a focus on reinventing the female characters.
And finally, a big shoutout to our jury: Akhil Katyal, Dhrubo Jyoti, Samina Mishra, Mary Therese Kurkalang, and Onaiza Drabu. They had an impossible task ahead of them, and we so appreciate the rigour, care, and deep commitment with which they set about the work of choosing our finalists. More on them soon as well!