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Fiction

Himal Fiction Fest 2025: Southasian speculative fiction

Join us for two panel events on 9 June and 16 June!

🔮 We’re thrilled to announce Himal’s 2025 Fiction Fest: a celebration of original short speculative fiction exploring imagined futures of Southasia!

✍ From 9 to 20 June, we’ll publish a selection of stories that push the boundaries of genre and region, along with two special online events featuring panel discussions with renowned Southasian publishers, editors and authors. 

🎨 All artwork by Shanghai-based artist 愚木混株 CDD20 via Pixabay.

Panel Event #1: The State of Speculative Fiction in Southasia

Panel Event #2: Caste, Gender and Resistance in Southasian Speculative Fiction

Read the stories from our finalists this year:

"We Have Always Lived in the Temple" by Amal Singh

"The Waters Between Us" by Glen Loveland

"Artificial Emotion" by Sakina Hassan

"Ode to Abundance" by Arslan Athar

"The Water Diviner" by Shikhandin

"The Patch" by Varoon P Anand

Check out the stories from the Himal Fiction Fest 2023 and 2024.

The demise of Buddhist philosophy in Southasia and its journey to the east

🎥🛕Bollywood’s descent into Hindu nationalism – Southasia Weekly #110

Pakistan’s “open war” on Afghanistan only strengthens the Taliban

📚 Southasia Review of Books - 11 March 2026

Himal Interviews: The threat to Muslims is a crisis for India’s democracy