19th November 2020, New Delhi: The Oxford Bookstore today announced the sixth edition of Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize with jury members Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Shobhaa De & Kunal Basu, Priti Paul & Namita Gokhale.
Instituted in March 2015 by Oxford Bookstore, the Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize year after year has gained traction as the most prestigious award in the book cover design industry. It is a first of its kind award for brilliance in book design, an attempt by the iconic bookstore to recognize and encourage the extraordinary work of illustrators, designers and publishers across India. The prize appreciates the importance of the balance of graphics and narrative, particularly in our increasingly visual age, and believes that a book cover interprets and decodes the ensuing text in crucial ways that contribute to its ultimate success.
The sixth edition jury for Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize comprises of Prominent Author, Indian columnist and novelist, Shobhaa De, well known Indian politician, writer and Member of Parliament, Shashi Tharoor, renowned author, Kunal Basu, Director, Apeejay Surrendra Group and the creative force behind Oxford Bookstores, Priti Paul and author, publisher & literary historian, Namita Gokhale. The jury members are all pre-eminent in their particular fields and share a love and commitment to books and reading. The varied interests of these eminent jurors will help create a rich and diverse perspective for the selection.
Under the guidance of Ms. Priti Paul, Director, Apeejay Surrendra Group, Oxford Bookstores has been pushing all boundaries to encourage the publishing industry and celebrate the business of books. Standout cover design is an integral part of the success of a book, designers and illustrators play a vital role in helping a book become emblematic and create recall.
The winner will be announced at the Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival 2020 and an exhibition of the book covers will be displayed at Oxford Bookstore, Connaught Place. The winning entry will be awarded with a prize amount along with a trophy.
Covers of titles by designers of Indian origin and published between April 2019 and March 2020 are invited to apply for the sixth Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize. Entries are welcome from the 19th November 2020 till 20th December 2020.
In its first year, the prize was given to designer, Bena Sareen for the book, Talking of Justice by late author, Leila Seth, published by Aleph followed by designer for the second year Pinaki De was declared winner for book Kalkatta authored by Kunal Basu, published by Picador India. The third Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize was awarded to Maithili Doshi Aphale for the book Himalaya authored by Ruskin Bond, Namita Gokhale, published by Speaking Tiger. The fourth Oxford Bookstore Book Cover was awarded to Bonita Vaz Shimray for the book Remnants of a Separation by Aanchal Malhotra published by Harper Collins. The Fifth Oxford Bookstore Book Cover was awarded to Sneha Pamneja for the book Tiffin by Sonal Ved, published by Roli Books.
