Neelanjana Banerjee

Kulhar Books: South Asian Literary Innovation / Make It Rain: Keep Kaya Press Thriving!

" I've had the privilege of working and learning the ins and outs of the independent publishing industry at Kaya Press for over 13 years now, and in that time, have helped launch two regionally focused imprints: one focused on South Korean literature in translation, and one on Vietnamese Diasporic literature. But I wasn't seeing South Asian books in translation being read or recognized in the US literary scene, and also felt like the South Asian literary landscape was void of the kinds of stories I was most interested in, risk-taking political work or voices writing from the margins. I've been working for the past five years to make Kulhar a reality, and am so excited that we're launching with two books in 2026, but in order to keep Kulhar alive in these times of reduced arts funding -- I need your help. Reaching our $20,000 goal will ensure that this wasn't just a pandemic pipe dream for me, and really something that we need as readers, writers, and lovers of overlooked and beautiful literature. I can't wait to put these books in your hands! "

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  • $10,000

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About


Kulhar Books publishes stylistically daring and politically imaginative literature from the South Asian diasporas — and we are the only publishing entity in the United States doing this editorial work.

Kulhar was born from a simple but urgent discovery: there are no national government agencies or foundations that support literary translation in South Asia — not in Bangladesh, not in India, not in Pakistan. And in India, many writers and translators told us clearly: even if such state funding existed, they would feel wary about accepting government money for creative work.

Kulhar exists to change this landscape — to build a new, independent, transnational home for South Asian diasporic literature and translation.

You can help make it real. We are raising $20,000 by December 31, 2025, to launch Kulhar Books publicly in 2026. Your support creates space where none currently exists.

Managing Editor Neelanjana Banerjee convened an extraordinary editorial team — award-winning poet + translator Rajiv Mohabir, writer + scholar Torsa Ghosal, and poet + editor Jhani Randhawa — to champion the kinds of writers and stories that have not yet had pathways into U.S. publishing.

In Spring 2026, Kulhar will publish our first two titles:

Orijit Sen’s River of Stories — widely considered the first Indian graphic novel — a deeply personal account of the massive Narmada Bachao Andolan (Save the Narmada River) movement of the 1990s, when ordinary people across India converged to resist environmental devastation and the forced displacement of Indigenous Adivasi communities. This new edition features a foreword by Arundhati Roy and a new introduction by Sen — an urgent document of environmental activism, resistance, and community power.

Ansley Moon’s Register the Missing — a devastating poetic archive of neglected histories: a widow forced to relinquish her daughter, a child navigating identity and inherited loss, and an unnamed chorus of “unclaimed girls” who remind us that “nothing stays buried, not even a daughter.”

These two titles embody what Kulhar is built to do: publish South Asian diasporic work that reframes dominant narratives, expands our sense of lineage, and places politically engaged artists in the U.S. literary imagination.

But Kulhar is more than a list of books — it is a gathering place, a collaboration space, a vision for how South Asian diasporic literature circulates globally.

What South Asian diasporic voices do you want to see in print?

Your gift today directly enables acquisitions, translations, and author support — the actual building of this long-overdue literary home.

Donate here today — help Kulhar Books come to life in 2026. 

This fundraiser is part of Kaya Press's 2025 Make It Rain annual drive, and all donations are tax deductible. At Kaya Press, we believe that books and community  helps us all thrive. Your support as readers, writers, educators, and customers is the reason we have made it to 31 years as an independent publishing house dedicated to championing avant-garde, experimental, and expectation-busting literature from the Asian Pacific American and Asian diasporas.