Dur e Aziz Amna on writing a story of womanhood and ambition in Pakistan: Southasia Review of Books podcast #37
Welcome to the Southasia Review of Books podcast, where we speak to celebrated authors and emerging literary voices from across Southasia. In this episode, Shwetha Srikanthan speaks to the writer Dur e Aziz Amna about her second novel, A Splintering (Duckworth Books, September 2025).
In a village in rural Pakistan, Tara dreams of escaping the dust, the stench, and the violent grip of her brother. An education and marriage to a middle-class accountant takes her to the capital, but she soon learns that respectability can become its own kind of cage. Her hunger for freedom and social mobility only deepens, even as the shadows of her past loom large.
Set against a backdrop of political unrest and everyday precarity, A Splintering by Dur e Aziz Amna is a gripping story of womanhood, desire and the costs of ambition.
This episode is now available on Youtube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Current Indian regulatory restrictions prevent us from processing recurring payments for Indian credit/debit cards. Please select a one-time payment plan from here to continue supporting our journalism.
Episode notes:
A Splintering by Dur E Aziz Amna (Duckworth Books, September 2025)
American Fever by Dur E Aziz Amna (Sceptre / Arcade, August 2022)
‘A Splintering’ - Dur e Aziz Amna (Substack, Nov 2024)
‘A cold heart’ by Dur E Aziz Amna - Shortlisted in the Himal Short Story Competition 2019
‘The Joy of Influence’ - Dur e Aziz Amna (Lithub, August 2022)
‘Inheritance’ - Dur e Aziz Amna (Wasafiri, August 2022)
‘The Many Homes of My Mother’ - Dur e Aziz Amna (Al Jazeera, September 2021)
‘Your Tongue Is Still Yours: Reflections On Language’ - Dur e Aziz Amna (Vintage Digital / Financial Times, November 2019)
‘House on Mayo Road’ - Dur e Aziz Amna (Longreads, November 2018)
✨Thank you for listening to the Southasia Review of Books Podcast from Himal Southasian. If you like this episode, please share widely, rate, review, subscribe and download the show on your favourite podcast apps.
✉️Let’s keep the conversation going – please share your thoughts on the episode. Leave us a comment on Youtube or write to us at editorial@himalmag.com.
🎙️Tune in to Himal’s State of Southasia podcast hosted by associate editor Nayantara Narayanan, featuring conversations on pressing social and political issues from across Southasia.
📼If you haven’t already, do subscribe to the Himal Southasian YouTube channel and help us spread the word by sharing these episodes widely.
🙏🏼If you’d like to support our work, please do become paying Himal Patron – we have a great programme with lots of perks, and we’ll welcome you to a fantastic Southasia Review of Books community.
