Goncourt Choice of India 2025

In 2021, India proudly joined the international family of the Choix Goncourt (Goncourt Choice). The Prix Goncourt is one of the most prestigious French literary prizes. It is awarded every year to the author of “the best and most imaginative prose work of the year”. The Goncourt Choice of India was created for Indian francophone students who love literature. It is affiliated with the Académie Goncourt.

For its fifth edition, the prize is supported by 10 institutions, comprising the network of Alliances Françaises as well as 8 universities across India:

In the course of 4 months, the jury read the four books shortlisted for the Goncourt Prize in their original language, and discussed them with their teachers and classmates.

• Nathacha Appanah — La nuit au cœur (Night at Heart), Gallimard
• Emmanuel Carrère — Kolkhoze (Kolkhoze), P.O.L
• Caroline Lamarche — Le Bel Obscur (The Beautiful Darkness), Seuil
• Laurent Mauvignier — La maison vide (The Empty House), Minuit

A series of online sessions are offered to them to get to know France’s most prestigious literary prize, to learn the basics of literary criticism, and to understand the publication journey behind the four titles.

The deliberations and the announcement of the prize will be announced in March 2026.