In collaboration with SheThePeople, India’s first women’s channel inspired by real stories about and for women, Penguin Random House India (PRHI) launches The Women’s Library, a campaign to promote and position women in writing in a societal setting.
Bringing a gendered lens to a range of topics relevant in a cultural, business, professional and personal background, The Women’s Library aims to introduce new perspectives on the environment around us. It will focus on shaping our understanding of women in society—the impact that female-led writings have on our reading repertoire, on the nuances of daily lives—from news to policymaking.
PRHI curates a careful selection of books by leading women writers—national and international—to celebrate the different perspectives their works present. This campaign will showcase women writing with SheThePeople, all through social-media platforms. Short online videos will capture the new and established voices of women in writing and publishing talking about the ways female voices widen horizons in a larger collective context. These videos will cover personal stories, inspirational anecdotes and impress upon change that such writing can bring about.
As part of the retail leg of the campaign, books written by talented women authors from PRHI will be made available in bookshops across the country. These bookstores will join the movement to spotlight great works of fiction and non-fiction by women writers from across the world—Krishna Sobti, Namita Devidayal, Sudha Murty, Namita Gokhale, Sohaila Abdulali, Richa Kaul Padte, Soha Ali Khan, Manisha Koirala, Payal Kapadia, Paro Anand, Taslima Nasreen, Fatima Bhutto, Margaret Atwood, Anna Burns, Sally Rooney, Michelle Obama, Sheryl Sandberg, and many more, to name a few.
Shaili Chopra, founder, SheThePeople, says, ‘This March, we will talk about The Women’s Library, a curated reading experience that will showcase talented women authors who have courageously enunciated eclectic outlooks and viewpoints with their writings. Their books have introduced new voices and ideas which are led by women and help us articulate our position in the larger society more efficiently. Embracing perennially relevant topics, the voices of women in writing have always given people a new and fresh way of thinking, and this campaign will take those voices to a larger audience and broaden their understanding of everything that is happening around us.’
Niti Kumar, SVP, marketing, PRHI, says, ‘Women in writing have come a long way to be able to put forth their distinct voices and viewpoints. As a leading publisher, PRHI has aimed to be a rallying force in bringing out new, emerging writings and keeping the established ones relevant within the literary landscape. With this campaign, we are looking forward to spread the message that writings by women are critical in shaping the society, people and culture. We are hoping to create a more permanent space in our daily lives—in offices and homes—for these books by women authors, thereby letting in different outlooks in our everyday thinking.’
