• The 2023 Gratiaen Prize Winner Ramya Jirasinghe on the backbone of her winning manuscript

Who would have thought that love cake will make a mark in English literature? Well now, it has. The Gratiaen Prize for last year (2023) which was awarded this year (2024) was won by Ramya Jirasinghe for her work – Father Cabraal’s Recipe for Love Cake. 

A poet, fiction and non-fiction writer, Jirasinghe won the Sri Lanka State Literary Joint Award in 2011 for her collection of poetry, There’s an Island in the Bone.  She was also longlisted for the Fish Poetry Prize in the same year and was earlier a joint runner up in The Guardian Orange First Words Competition in 2009. An avid writer, she has been featured in the Times Online 2009 for her contemporary war poetry. Mica Press (United Kingdom [UK]) published her work Love Poems from a Frangipani Garden. Just two weeks after winning the prestigious Gratiaen, Jirasinghe was on ‘Kaleidoscope’ last week to give an insight into her work and the life she breathes into her work. 

Following are excerpts from the interview:

Congratulations on winning The Gratiaen Prize for 2023. In your acceptance speech, you said that The Gratiaen has been elusive to you thus far?

I started submitting to The Gratiaen Trust very early on, in 1998 in fact. It was my first shortlisting. And then, I was shortlisted again in 2008. So, I had tried several times and never won. What Gratiaen winner Ashok Ferry used to say before he won was true of me too: “Always the bridesmaid; never the bride.”

What is ‘Father Cabraal's Recipe for Love Cake’ about? What actually made you choose this to be the title?

There is a love cake in the book. But, it's actually about the colonial encounter with spices, cinnamon and all those other commodities that were used in colonial trading. The whole trading empire was based on that. We still have the leftovers of that and that’s what the book is about. How it still changes and influences the peoples’ lives, and destroys peoples’ lives. There’s a considerable amount of history embedded in this book.

What do you want readers to take away from this book?

That people living in countries like ours are never free from their history. Our lives are still harmed, and mainly destroyed because of our history.

How long was this novel in the making?

Three months to write but 15-years to germinate.

How did the germination begin?

It began in the spur of a moment. There was a call from The Guardian requesting a paragraph for a fictional novel called, ‘The Letting Go’. I wrote the paragraph and sent it in and was selected as a joint runner up. 

Your genres are multiple - poetry, prose, fiction, and non-fiction. Which genre is actually challenging and which is most rewarding?

The long-form novel is the most challenging. For me, it's like drawing blood out of a stone – it's very difficult. The most rewarding would have been poetry earlier but now I would also say, drama. The reason is you see it enacted on stage. It’s immediate and you get to see how someone else interprets your work. That’s amazing.

Your poems and prose have accompanied books of art and works of art. Tell me more about that.

I have mostly written for Anoma Wijewardene’s works - her book and her collections. I’m grateful to Wijewardene for letting me into that world. Right now, I have a body of work to support me, but 15 years ago, Wijewardene singled me out, when nobody knew my work. I think it resonated with her, so we worked together. She asked me to write for her paintings – it was an inspiring experience.

Do you look at the painting and do the words flow?

That’s exactly what it is. You look at the painting and the words flow. That’s why it was easy for us to work together – the words just flowed. I recall one collection – deliverance, which really struck a chord with me. It really worked.

You've been writing a long time. Does anything surprise you about yourself as a writer, even after all these years?

Yes. I think that what comes out of the writing process always surprises me, because you sit down, you know the end, but how it ends and what happens in between are not really planned. And that's a surprising but very rewarding process too.

What was the process like in writing ‘Father Cabraal’s Recipe for Love Cake’?

Covid happened. So, we were left with a block of time at home, and I got to write. So, I would get up in the morning each day, sit down for four hours and write. 

Are you a disciplined writer?

 When I have the time to spare, I can be very disciplined. 

What themes do you gravitate towards? 

It’s quite clear to me now – it’s the broader historical context, and how it impacts the inner spirit of a person. 

What are some of the observations you've made about people, in your writing process? 

There’s nobody that’s entirely good or entirely bad. We are all a result of what has happened to us in the past. 

What are some of the lessons that you have learned as a writer?

I learned that there are so many people who are there to support you when you're writing in Sri Lanka. That’s very rewarding and it’s nice to know that you have that support. 

Tell me about the chapter you wrote for Sirima Bandaranaike’s book?

That chapter was commissioned by Sunethra Bandaranaike. Tissa Jayatilaka edited it. That book was compiled with contributions from various people who were invited to write.  I wrote about Sirima Bandaranaike’s work with the Mahila Samithi.  This was way before non-Governmental organisations were trendy. She delved into the development sector.  People like her were ahead of their time. 

What have you learned about yourself and Sri Lanka from your writing?

Sri Lanka is a wonderful environment, full of rich sources for writing. It's brimming with sources of inspiration.

What, if at all, has been your most challenging piece of work? 

It definitely is ‘Father Cabraal’s Recipe for Love Cake’, because writing a novel is a very tough process. You’re seated for four to five hours at a stretch and it takes a physical toll on your body. 

What is the best piece of advice you have got?

Editing is important. And, you have to say it; you just have to sit down and write. You can’t wait for inspiration. 

I know that there's a play coming up in August. Can you give us a little bit of a preview? 

Yes, I'm thrilled because the play is being staged for the Mind Adventures Theatre Company’s 25th anniversary. The play is about water, and the scarcity of resources and what you can do to discriminate against people in a small State like ours. It’s called ‘Water for Kings’. It’s unusual, poetic and Mind Adventures Founder Tracy Holsinger is turning it into a very visual drama.  The protagonist of course is the king. 

Other than this, what's more in the pipeline?

I'm very grateful for everything and I’m thankful for the recognition that this award has given me. Right now, I’m just taking everything in. Soon though, I want to get back to my writing. 

(Watch Ramya Jirasinghe’s complete interview on ‘Kaleidoscope with Savithri Rodrigo’ on 14 June on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn)

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(The writer is the host, director, and co-producer of the weekly digital programme ‘Kaleidoscope with Savithri Rodrigo’ which can be viewed on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. She has over three decades of experience in print, electronic, and social media)