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HarperCollins presents The Solitude of a Shadow by Devibharathi Translated from the Tamil by N. Kalyan Raman

NEW DELHI, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — 

An astutely observed narrative of our society and its overlapping hierarchies of caste, wealth and power.

Describes with clarity the poverty and isolation of obsession.

2023 Sahitya Akademi Award winner Devibharathi’s first novel to be translated into English.

Translated from the Tamil by N. Kalyan Raman, who was awarded the 2022 Sahitya Akademi Translation Prize for English.

‘Taut and hypnotic.’ – Amitabha Bagchi

‘A compelling read.’ – Jayasree Kalathil

Published by Harper Perennial

Paperback | Fiction | 208 pp | INR 399

Releasing 13 March 2024

About the Book

When the nameless protagonist of The Solitude of a Shadow unexpectedly encounters Karunakaran after nearly three decades, he is overwhelmed by a hitherto-dormant urge to wreak vengeance upon this man who had molested his sister and abused him all those years ago.

Devibharathi’s novel – his first to be translated into English describes with painful clarity the poverty and isolation of obsession, while life flourishes all around the protagonist. Written in his trademark sharp, clear-eyed style, it is also an astutely observed narrative of our society and its overlapping hierarchies of caste, wealth and power.

Superbly translated by N. Kalyan Raman, The Solitude of a Shadow shows us how treacherous and illusory the hunger for revenge can become – with unavoidable tragic consequences.

Author Devibharathi says, “The novel is an all-encompassing literary form. Scrutinizing life and transcending it through language is a challenging task. The writer must travel from the known towards the unknown. What constitutes the unknown? In my novel, I wished to talk only about the unknown. All the characters in the story – Karunakaran, Sharada, Sulo and the narrator, Rajasekaran – attempt to examine themselves. Everyone deals with life in their own way and by their own lights. Beyond good and evil, beyond right and wrong, what really happens?”

N. Kalyan Raman, translator of The Solitude of a Shadow says, “A superbly crafted novel on the doomed trajectory of vengeance. With every story, Devibharathi invents a language that suits the material. And he never writes the same story twice. Following his craft as a translator has been both challenging and exhilarating. This book is a product of that adventure.”

Rahul Soni, Associate Publisher – Literary, HarperCollins India says, “What could have been a simple tale of vengeance becomes, in Devibharathi’s hands, an exploration of the nature of obsession, the hollowness of revenge, and the inequalities of our society. N. Kalyan Raman’s translation is superbly attentive to tone and voice, and to the gradually ratcheting tension of the story. A gripping, disquieting work that will linger in your mind.”

Praise for The Solitude of a Shadow

‘Small town India comes alive with menace in this taut, hypnotic novel of humiliation and revenge. N. Kalyan Raman’s translation is a pleasure to read.’ – Amitabha Bagchi 

‘Devibharathi tells a complex story of love and revenge in a crisp, nuanced language. N. Kalyan Raman’s exquisite translation matches his literary craft, marked by its simplicity as well as the slow rise in tempo. A compelling read.’ – Jayasree Kalathil

About the Author and the Translator

Devibharathi (b. 1957) was born and raised in a small village in western Tamil Nadu, the second of five children in a schoolmaster’s family. He has worked as a political activist, government employee, journalist, managing editor of a leading literary magazine, and scriptwriter for television programmes. During a writing career spanning more than forty years, Devibharathi has published two collections of short stories, two novellas, four novels, a play, and two non-fiction anthologies containing essays and memoirs. Farewell, Mahatma, a collection of short stories in English translation, was published in 2014. Nizhalin Thanimai, the original of The Solitude of a Shadow, is his first novel. His fiction has received wide attention and praise from Tamil readers and critics. He has received several awards, including the inaugural Tannaram Literary Award in 2021, and the Kalaignar Porkizhi and Sahitya Akademi awards in 2023. He lives and works in a village in Tamil Nadu’s Tiruppur district.

N. Kalyan Raman is a translator of contemporary Tamil fiction and poetry into English. Over the past twenty-five years, he has published translations of fourteen works of Tamil fiction by important writers such as Ashokamitran, Poomani, Devibharathi, Perumal Murugan, Vaasanthi and Salma. His translations of contemporary Tamil poets have been published widely in journals and anthologies in India and abroad. Kalyan Raman also writes on cinema, politics and literature for leading journals and magazines in India. His translation of Perumal Murugan’s Poonachi was shortlisted for the inaugural JCB Prize (2018), longlisted for the National Book Award for Translated Literature (2020) and won the Sahitya Akademi’s Translation Prize (English) in 2022. In 2017, he received the prestigious Pudumaipithan Award for his contribution to the cause of Tamil literature through his translations. He lives and works in Chennai.

About HarperCollins India

HarperCollins India publishes some of the finest writers from the Indian Subcontinent and around the world, publishing approximately 200 new books every year, with a print and digital catalogue of more than 3,000 titles across 10 imprints. Its authors have won almost every major literary award including the Man Booker Prize, JCB Prize, DSC Prize, The Erasmus Prize, New India Foundation Award, Atta Galatta Prize, Shakti Bhatt Prize, Gourmand Cookbook Award, Publishing Next Award, Tata Literature Live! Award, Gaja Capital Business Book Prize, BICW Award, Sushila Devi Award, Sahitya Akademi Award, and Crossword Book Award. HarperCollins India also represents some of the finest publishers in the world including Harvard University Press, Gallup Press, Oneworld, Bonnier Zaffre, Usborne, Dover, Nosy Crow, and Quarto. HarperCollins India is India’s most awarded publisher seven Publisher of the Year Awards (2015, 2016, 2018, two in 2021, 2022, and 2024). HarperCollins India is a subsidiary of HarperCollins Publishers.

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Reliance Digital Introduces High-Performance iQOO 15R to its Nationwide Store Network

MUMBAI, India, March 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Reliance Digital announces the offline retail availability of iQOO, the high-performance smartphone brand built for today’s youth and tech-forward consumers. Following strong traction in online channels, iQOO is now extending its presence into physical retail, allowing customers to experience and purchase its devices first-hand at Reliance Digital stores across India.

Known for pushing the boundaries of speed, and power, the iQOO 15R is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5, delivering exceptional speed, responsiveness, and sustained performance throughout the day. It packs iQOO’s biggest battery yet in an ultra-slim 7.90mm design, making it India’s slimmest smartphone with a 7600 mAh battery.

The device features a 6.5K IceCore VC Cooling Chamber for stable performance and runs on OriginOS 6.0 based on Android 16 out of the box, supported by 4 years of software updates and 6 years of security updates. It is also equipped with a Sony LYT-700V OIS camera, a 1.5K 144Hz AMOLED EyeCare display, and IP68 & IP69 dust and water resistance, making it a dependable daily partner for professionals on the go.

The brand’s offline expansion marks an important step in deepening consumer engagement by offering hands-on access to its devices, enabling customers to explore iQOO’s powerful performance, advanced display technology, and flagship-grade camera capabilities in a real-world retail environment.

The availability of iQOO at Reliance Digital brings together two brands driven by innovation and consumer experience. While iQOO continues to build its reputation as a performance-led smartphone brand, Reliance Digital strengthens its portfolio by offering customers access to cutting-edge technology brands through its extensive nationwide retail network.

Through engaging in-store experiences, knowledgeable staff, and immersive product demonstrations, Reliance Digital aims to help consumers better understand iQOO’s performance-first DNA. This move further reinforces Reliance Digital’s commitment to staying ahead of evolving consumer preferences and serving as a preferred destination for discovering new-age technology.

With this expansion, Reliance Digital continues to play a key role in shaping India’s consumer electronics landscape by bringing future-ready brands closer to customers, while enabling smartphone brands like iQOO to build stronger connections with a growing, performance-driven audience.

The all new iQOO 15R is now available at Reliance Digital stores nationwide.

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Kotak Alts announces winner of the inaugural Katalyst Awards

Ms Himani Choudhary named Katalyst for the year – India’s Best Financial Content Creator; wins Rs. 25 Lakhs

MUMBAI, India, March 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Kotak Katalyst Awards, a national initiative instituted to recognise excellence and responsibility in financial content creation has announced the winner of its first Katalyst edition. Kotak Alternate Asset Managers Limited (“Kotak Alts”) today announced Himani Choudhary as the winner. The winner was awarded a prize of INR 25 Lakhs, positioning Katalyst among the most meaningful recognitions for financial content creators in India.

Srini Sriniwasan, Managing Director, Kotak Alts, said, “The Kotak Alts Katalyst Awards were instituted to recognize content creators who are contributing meaningfully to financial literacy in India. As investor participation deepens, audiences are seeking clarity, context, and credibility. The response from creators was overwhelming and points to the new generation of financial educators.  As the inaugural winner Ms. Himani Chaudhary, exemplifies the standard of financial communication that Katalyst seeks to encourage.”

The first edition of the Kotak Alts Katalyst Awards received over six hundred entries from across 19 states and in 8 languages, reflecting the growing role of digital creators in shaping financial awareness. Conceived in response to increasing clutter and misinformation in the financial ecosystem, Katalyst is designed to recognize creators who place accuracy, transparency, and investor interest at the core of their work.

The winning content, ‘Personal Finance & Major Finance Updates’ by Himani Choudhary, was recognised for its clarity, originality, and credibility. The jury noted the content’s ability to explain complex financial concepts in a clear and measured manner, supported by strong research and a consistent focus on investor education over virality.

To ensure a robust and transparent evaluation process, the awards framework was designed and audited by EY. The top thirty entries were assessed by an academic jury.

The top 10 finalists were subsequently evaluated by a grand jury comprising Kunal Shah, Founder and CEO of CRED; Radhika Gupta, Managing Director and CEO of Edelweiss Mutual Fund; and Alpesh Shah, Managing Director and Senior Partner at Boston Consulting Group, and chaired by Ananth Narayan, former Whole–Time Member of SEBI with extensive capital markets and regulatory experience.

The Katalyst Awards recognise financial content creators who priorities financial literacy, substance, and long–term investor interest. Through this initiative, Kotak Alts aims to encourage responsible financial communication and support the development of informed and confident investors across India.

About Kotak Alternate Asset Managers Ltd: Kotak Alternate Asset Managers Limited (‘Kotak Alts’), a part of Kotak Mahindra Group (‘Kotak’), focuses on Alternate Asset Management and Investment Advisory businesses. Kotak Alts was set up in early 2005 and has raised, managed, and advised over USD 22 billion across different asset classes, including Private Equity, Real Estate, Infrastructure, Special Situations, Private Credit, and Investment Advisory. The asset management business and investment advisory vertical are managed by independent specialist teams. For more information, visit https://www.kotakalternateasset.com/

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Paperpal for Life Sciences Establishes HIPAA Readiness, Strengthening Enterprise Adoption of AI in Regulated Medical and Scientific Writing Workflows

MUMBAI, India, March 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Paperpal for Life Sciences, an enterprise-grade Artificial Intelligence (AI) platform by Cactus Communications, purpose-built for Medical Affairs and Life Sciences organizations, announced the completion of an assessment evaluating its operational and technical safeguards to support Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requirements. This milestone reinforces Paperpal’s commitment to meeting the rigorous standards of security, data protection, and regulatory readiness required for regulated scientific workflows.

Growing AI use in medical affairs writing and publication workflows is intensifying scrutiny on data privacy, governance, and regulatory accountability. To support these evolving needs, Paperpal for Life Sciences has undertaken an assessment of its systems and processes to evaluate readiness to support HIPAA compliance, where applicable, and now proudly offers the option to execute a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) for Protected Health Information (PHI) and Personally Identifiable Information (PII). This offering gives customers the confidence that PHI or PII, if received, is handled securely and responsibly, in line with regulatory expectations and enterprise risk management practices.

Paperpal for Life Sciences provides AI writing, literature search, source-grounded summarization with citation support, and critical publication checks, powering medical affairs content creation under stringent data privacy and governance controls. The platform accelerates research-to-publication timelines by upto 25%, supporting faster dissemination of clinical evidence and earlier commercialization of new drugs and therapies.

Nishchay Shah, Group CTO and EVP, Products and AI at Cactus Communications, said, “As AI becomes foundational to regulated scientific and medical workflows, compliance and trust are no longer optional. Paperpal for Life Sciences’ HIPAA readiness measures reflect our secure-by-design approach to AI, strong data governance framework, and alignment with real-world enterprise and regulatory requirements. This milestone enables organizations to adopt AI at scale with confidence that their data, processes, and compliance obligations are protected .”

Elvira Dsouza, President, Cactus Life Sciences, added, “Medical Affairs and Life Sciences teams operate in highly regulated environments where scientific rigor, data privacy, and compliance are non-negotiable. HIPAA readiness positions Paperpal for Life Sciences as a trusted AI partner, one that enables organizations to accelerate evidence generation and scientific communication without compromising regulatory integrity .”

With this announcement, Paperpal for Life Sciences reinforces its position as a purpose-built, enterprise-ready AI platform for medical affairs content generation that supports innovation while meeting the highest standards of privacy, ethics, and regulatory compliance.

Media Contact:

Nidhi Amin

nidhi.amin@cactusglobal.com 

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