Author: Vrinda Iyengar

For this interview, I had the pleasure of hearing from the current Editor-in-Chief of and one of the founding members of the Bhashalaya Literary Magazine, a South-Asia-based independent literary magazine focused on exploring culture and identity through literature. Read about this magazine from it’s leader themself below!

Q: Please introduce yourself and describe your magazine.
I am the EIC and one of the founding members of Bhashalaya Literary Magazine which is an independent litmag. We aim to publish experimental, and politically aware pieces and not just that, we also like to discuss major literary movements, literary theories and basically everything related to arts and literature. Through our posts we promote critical thinking skills and perpetuate the idea that everything around us can be examined through a political lens. Also we’d love to support emerging writers and literature enthusiasts.

Q: What prompted you to start Bhashalaya Literary Magazine?
An enthusiasm for literature and an awareness regarding all the cultural, intellectual and political shifts , happening all around actually prompted us to start this page. Living in Bharat, made us understand how literature is deeply entangled with our identities, history, and resistance. We felt the need for a space to discuss the ideas and encourage the youth to engage critically and analyse the world they inhabit.

Q: Can you explain where your magazine’s name comes from?
The name Bhashalaya is an amalgamation of two Sanskrit words, Bhasha means language and laya means abode. Together it means an abode or a home for languages. It reflects our commitment to multilingualism and the idea that language isn’t just a form of expression but is also a living archive of heritage, imagination and culture.

Q: What are some of your goals/things you hope to accomplish with Bhashalaya Lit Mag?
Our goals are :- We’d love to create a platform for new and underrepresented writers and voices, without being exclusionary . We want to normalise multilingualism and translation within mainstream literary movements .We’d love to encourage dialogue between history, literature and politics.

Q: How do you think your identity, and the fact that you are based in South Asia has influenced some the of the choices you’ve made in setting up this magazine and/or the choices you make while reviewing and editing submissions? In other words, how does your identity play into making Bhashalaya different from other literary magazines?
As a South Asian magazine, our identity allows us to read pieces with cultural intimacy. We’re particularly attentive to silences and vernacular vulnerabilities which might otherwise be overlooked by mainstream literary communities. We’re open to narratives which aren’t linear and openly express our resistance to exoticization and cultural commodification. Bhashalaya prioritizes authenticity and political consciousness.

Q: Lastly, please recommend a (or a few!) piece(s) your magazine has published that you recommend everyone read and why.
We haven’t released our first issue or accepted submissions for poems or literary works yet but we plan to do that soon once our magazine reaches a sustainable readership. However through our posts we have tried to engage with critical discussions regarding literature and culture, ranging from Marxist theory to Feminism. We’ve also focused on cultural commodification and postcolonial ideas. We recommend engaging with them all as they do reflect the values of our magazine.

You can learn more about the Bhashalaya Literary Magazine and be notified of their updates by following their instagram (@bhashalaya_literary_magazine)