Valley of Words Announces Winners of the 2025 REC-VoW Book Awards

Literary Luminaries in English, Hindi & Children’s Writing to Be Awarded in Dehradun Eight Authors Honoured Across Genres; Dehradun to Host Grand Finale of VoW Book Awards in October Dehradun, September 12, 2025: VoW (Valley of Words), the annual not-for-profit literature and arts festival held in Dehradun, has announced the winners of its 2025 REC-VoW Book Awards.

This year’s honours across genres spanning English Fiction, English Non-Fiction, Hindi Fiction, Hindi Non-Fiction, Hindi Translation, and Children’s & Young Adult Literature. The winners will be featured at the festival’s ninth edition on October 25–26, 2025, at Hotel Madhuban in Dehradun. Each award also carries a citation and a cash prize of INR 1 lakh.

This year’s awards received more than 600 nominations from 75 publishing houses across the country.

The final selections were evaluated by a Jury of last year's award-winning authors and translators. Festival Director Dr. Sanjeev Chopra, remarked: “What distinguishes this year’s winners is the range of voices and the themes they take on — from questions of identity and social change to the reinterpretation of cultural memory.

The personal is the political, as these works underscore. Together, they reflect the evolving landscape of Indian publishing and the appetite among readers for stories that are both rooted and contemporary.”

Winners of the 2025 REC-VoW Book Awards

● Ananda: An Exploration of Cannabis in India — Author: Karan Madhok | Publisher: Aleph | City: Mussoorie

● Swallowing the Sun — Author: Lakshmi Murdeshwar Puri | Publisher: Aleph | City: Delhi

● Lavanyadevi — Translator: Banibrata Mahanta (Original Author in Hindi - Kusum Khemani) | Publisher: Orient BlackSwan | City: Varanasi

● Bidaai De Ma! — Author: Sudhir Vidhyarthi | Publisher: Rajpal | City: Bareilly

● Suno Kabir — Author: Soni Pandey | Publisher: Lokbharti | City: Noida

● Bahattar Meel — Translator: Sulabha Kore (Original Author in Marathi - Ashok Vatkar) | Publisher: Radhakrishna | City: Mumbai

● art is a voice — Author: Kripa | Publisher: ArtsIntegrated | City: Mumbai

● Cactus Wants a Hug — Author: Neil Flory | Publisher: Hachette | City: Goa

These winning titles underscores the festival's commitment to literary diversity especially in the growing domains of translation, children's literature and young adult writing.

About Valley of Words: Valley of Words (VoW) is a not-for-profit, volunteer-driven initiative of The Valley of Words Foundation Trust based in Dehradun. Since 2017, it has grown into a pan-Indian platform for literature and the arts, bringing together writers, translators, publishers, critics, artists, and readers through its annual festival and year-round programs.

The festival is built around curated conversations, multiple verticals across disciplines, and the VoW Book Awards, which recognise writing in English, Hindi, and children’s literature. With a focus on intergenerational dialogue, VoW encourages participants to question, think laterally, and engage critically with ideas that shape contemporary society.