The Madan Puraskar Guthi has released a short list of eight finalists for this year’s Madan Puraskar.

The shortlisted books include Kairan by Dhrubasatya Pariyar, Nathiya by Saraswati Pratikshya, Paathsala by Tirtha Gurung, Bhuinya by Yangesh, Yar by Nayanraj Pandey, Yogmaya by Nilam Karki ‘Niharika’, Limbuni Gaun by Raj Manglak, and Himali Darshan by Mohan Baidhya ‘Kiran’. The shortlisted books were selected from a total of 253 entries.

Considered one of the most prestigious literary awards in Nepal, the Madan Puraskar was established by Jagadamba Kumari Devi in memory of her late husband General Madan SJB Rana, on September 26, 1955. Each year the Guthi presents the award to one outstanding book along with a cash purse of Rs 200, 000.

Previous recipients of the award include noted literary figues such as Satyamohan Joshi, Parijat, and Sarubhakta, among others.

Poet Ghanashyam Kandel won the award last year for his epic poetry Dhritarastra, a reimagining of the Mahabharata, retelling the epic from the blind king’s perspective, undercutting deeply entrenched notions of what is right and wrong and what is just and unjust.

Alongside the Madan Puraskar, the Guthi also hands out the Jagadamba Shree Puraskar to a literary figure for their lifetime contribution in the field of Nepali literature.