Aucklander wins Diwali short story competition
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The national winner of the Asia:NZ/Cathay Pacific Diwali Short Story competition is Saran Hardman from Glen Eden in Auckland. The announcement was made by Ian Herald, Marketing Services Manager with Cathay Pacific (pictured), at the Diwali Festival of Lights celebrations on Saturday 10 October in Auckland. Saran wins a trip for two to India.
The competition received an overwhelming response from across New Zealand. The rules were simple – entrants were invited to write a short story of up to 800 words which included the following four words: “Diwali”, “homecoming”, “lamington”, and “Cathay Pacific”.
The judges noted that “while there were a large number of stories about plane journeys and reunions, most of the winning stories eschewed the obvious and took a more unexpected path”.
Saran’s story, entitled Cattle Love, was the pick of the 200-plus entries of exceptional standard. According to the judges, “in only 800 words this story touches on loss and exile, the gap between cultures, and the solace of animals.”
They added: “It does all this without labouring the point. It’s spare, quiet, and doesn’t explain itself too much.”
There were a number of strong contenders for the top prize. “All had an enticing originality about them, whether in the language, the situation, or the voices of the characters,” declared the judges. In the “highly commended” category were:
The Diwali Festival of Lights is celebrating its eighth anniversary and was celebrated in and around Auckland’s Eastern Viaduct over the weekend 10 and 11 October (see slideshow). Wellingtonians celebrated one of India’s best loved festivals at the TSB Arena on Queen’s Wharf in the capital on Sunday 18 October.
