What Do We Do Now

Banu Mushtaq is an acclaimed Indian writer, women’s rights activist, and lawyer, and the 2025 International Booker Prize winner for Heart Lamp, her first collection of short stories, translated by Deepa Bhasthi. Mushtaq began writing within the progressive protest literary circles in southwestern India in the 1970s and 80s. Critical of the caste system, the Bandaya Sahitya movement gave rise to influential Dalit and Muslim writers, of whom Mushtaq was one of the few women. She is the author of six short story collections, a novel, an essay collection, and a poetry collection. She writes in Kannada and has won the Karnataka Sahitya Academy and Daana Chintamani Attimabbe awards.

Banu Mushtaq adalah penulis terkemuka asal India yang meraih International Booker Prize 2025 untuk Heart Lamp, kumpulan cerita pendek pertamanya yang diterjemahkan oleh Deepa Bhasthi. Selain menulis, ia juga berprofesi sebagai pengacara dan aktif memperjuangkan hak-hak perempuan. Ia mulai menulis pada 1970–1980-an, sebagai bagian dari gerakan Bandaya Sahitya, gerakan sastra perlawanan di India barat daya yang menentang sistem kasta dan mendorong keadilan sosial. Mushtaq termasuk sedikit perempuan penulis dalam gerakan ini dan menjadi suara penting bagi komunitas Dalit dan Muslim. Ia menulis dalam bahasa Kannada, dan telah menerbitkan enam kumpulan cerita pendek, satu novel, satu buku esai, dan satu kumpulan puisi. Karyanya telah mendapat sejumlah penghargaan, termasuk dari Karnataka Sahitya Academy dan Daana Chintamani Attimabbe Award.

Dana Dajani is an award-winning Palestinian-American actress, poet, and filmmaker whose work combines theatre, spoken word, and cinematic storytelling. Known for her powerful performances on themes of justice, identity, and belonging, she has appeared on global stages from the Sydney Opera House to the Guggenheim Museum. Her poetry films, including the multi-award-winning Caged Bird, co-created with her husband Rami Kanso, pair verse with striking visual art. Recognized as Emirates Woman’s Artist of the Year and recipient of the Young Arab Award for Entertainment, Dana uses her craft to inspire change, amplify underrepresented voices, and create art that resonates across cultures and causes.

Dana Dajani adalah aktris, penyair, dan pembuat film Palestina-Amerika peraih berbagai penghargaan. Karyanya memadukan teater, puisi lisan, dan seni bercerita sinematik. Ia dikenal lewat penampilan memukau bertema keadilan, identitas, dan rasa memiliki, serta telah tampil di panggung-panggung dunia mulai dari Sydney Opera House hingga Museum Guggenheim. Film-film puisinya, termasuk Caged Bird yang meraih banyak penghargaan dan ia ciptakan bersama suaminya, Rami Kanso, memadukan sajak dengan visual yang kuat. Diakui sebagai Artist of the Year versi Emirates Woman dan penerima Young Arab Award untuk kategori Entertainment, Dana menggunakan karyanya untuk menginspirasi perubahan, mengangkat suara-suara yang kurang terwakili, dan menciptakan seni yang menggema lintas budaya dan isu sosial.

Deepa Bhasthi is an acclaimed Indian writer and literary translator, and the first Indian translator to win the International Booker Prize 2025 for her translation of Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq. Her columns, essays, and cultural criticism have been published in India and internationally. Her published translations from Kannada include a novel by Kota Shivarama Karanth and a collection of short stories by Kodagina Gouramma. Her translation of Banu Mushtaq’s stories has won her the English PEN Translates award.

Deepa Bhasthi adalah penulis dan penerjemah sastra India ternama yang mencatat sejarah sebagai penerjemah India pertama yang memenangkan International Booker Prize 2025, berkat terjemahannya atas Heart Lamp karya Banu Mushtaq. Tulisan-tulisannya telah dimuat di berbagai publikasi, baik di India maupun di luar negeri. Ia telah menerjemahkan sejumlah buku dari bahasa Kannada, salah satu bahasa utama di India, termasuk sebuah novel karya Kota Shivarama Karanth dan kumpulan cerita pendek karya Kodagina Gouramma. Atas karyanya menerjemahkan cerita-cerita Banu Mushtaq, ia juga dianugerahi English PEN Translates Award.

Iyas Lawrence is an Indonesian independent journalist and the Founder of Makna Talks, a media company based in Jakarta. With over a decade of experience in the media industry, Iyas has made significant contributions through various roles. These include hosting a morning TV show, working as a journalist and photojournalist for a global company, and broadcasting on the radio. In addition to their extensive media career, Iyas Lawrence holds a degree in Art and Design from a prominent university in Jakarta. This educational background has enriched their creative approach and storytelling techniques in journalism. Under Iyas Lawrence's leadership, Makna Talks has become a notable player in Jakarta's media landscape, offering insightful and engaging content across different platforms. Their diverse experience and passion for the field continue to drive their success and influence in the industry.

Iyas Lawrence adalah jurnalis independen asal Indonesia sekaligus pendiri Makna Talks, sebuah perusahaan media berbasis di Jakarta. Berkarier lebih dari satu dekade di industri media, Iyas telah berkontribusi melalui beragam peran, mulai dari menjadi pembawa acara program televisi pagi, jurnalis dan fotojurnalis di perusahaan internasional, hingga penyiar radio. Selain pengalamannya yang luas di dunia media, Iyas juga menempuh pendidikan di bidang seni dan desain di salah satu universitas ternama di Jakarta. Latar belakang ini memperkaya pendekatan kreatifnya dalam bercerita dan memperkuat teknik jurnalisme yang ia kembangkan. Berbekal visinya, Makna Talks tumbuh menjadi salah satu media berpengaruh di Jakarta, menghadirkan konten yang berwawasan, segar, dan mampu menjangkau berbagai audiens. Dengan pengalaman yang beragam dan semangat besar terhadap dunia media, Iyas Lawrence terus memperluas pengaruhnya sekaligus menghadirkan karya yang relevan bagi publik.

Juli Sastrawan is an Indonesian writer and a researcher. Since 2022, he has focused on collective memory, the politics of remembrance, and historical narratives in literature and the arts. In 2024, he undertook a writing residency in Kyoto and served as a Guest Researcher Associate at the Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University. Currently, he is exploring the intersection between fictions and historical memories, particularly in the 1965 tragedy and the Hiroshima Atomic Bombing.

Juli Sastrawan adalah penulis dan peneliti asal Indonesia yang sejak 2022 berfokus pada memori kolektif, politik ingatan, serta narasi sejarah dalam sastra dan seni. Pada 2024, ia menjalani residensi menulis di Kyoto dan menjadi peneliti tamu di Pusat Kajian Asia Tenggara, Universitas Kyoto. Saat ini, ia tengah mengerjakan proyek penulisan yang mengeksplorasi bagaimana fiksi menjadi medium bagi penyintas dan saksi mata Peristiwa 1965 dan Bom Atom Hiroshima.

Sara Hamdan is a Palestinian American journalist for The New York Times and an editor at Google. After winning a Netflix short story award, she received the First Chapter: Emirates Literature Foundation Seddiqi Writers’ Fellowship for her debut novel, What Will People Think? Raised in Greece, Sara has called Dubai home for the past twenty years. She is a graduate of UC Berkeley and Columbia University, and a former banker at Merrill Lynch.

Sara Hamdan adalah jurnalis Palestina-Amerika untuk The New York Times dan editor di Google. Setelah memenangkan penghargaan cerita pendek dari Netflix, ia menerima First Chapter: Emirates Literature Foundation Seddiqi Writers’ Fellowship untuk novel debutnya, What Will People Think? Dibesarkan di Yunani, Sara telah menetap di Dubai selama dua puluh tahun terakhir. Ia merupakan lulusan UC Berkeley dan Universitas Columbia, serta pernah bekerja sebagai bankir di Merrill Lynch.

Thomas Mayo is an Aboriginal, award-winning author, essayist, orator, and a signatory to the Uluru Statement from the Heart, with Torres Strait Islander heritage. His advocacy and leadership for workers’ rights and for justice and recognition of Indigenous peoples span over twenty years. He is currently the Assistant National Secretary of the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA), serves on the board of the Indigenous Literacy Foundation, and is a member of the steering group for the First Nations Clean Energy Network. Thomas lives on Larrakia land in Darwin.

Thomas Mayo adalah seorang Aborigin, penulis peraih penghargaan, esais, orator, dan penandatangan Uluru Statement from the Heart, dengan garis keturunan Kepulauan Selat Torres. Selama lebih dari dua dekade, ia aktif dalam advokasi dan kepemimpinan untuk memperjuangkan hak-hak pekerja serta keadilan dan pengakuan bagi masyarakat adat. Saat ini, ia menjabat sebagai Asisten Sekretaris Nasional Maritime Union of Australia (MUA), menjadi anggota dewan Indigenous Literacy Foundation, dan tergabung dalam kelompok pengarah First Nations Clean Energy Network. Thomas tinggal di tanah Larrakia, Darwin.