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Q&A with Sonu Bhasin, Crossword Book Awards 2025 Jury: On leadership, literature, and what makes business writing endure
Q&A with Sonu Bhasin, Crossword Book Awards 2025 Jury: On leadership, literature, and what makes business writing endure
Sonu Bhasin, jury member for the Crossword Book Awards 2025, shares her reflections on evaluating this year’s submissions. With her deep understanding of leadership and entrepreneurship, she discusses how this years Business and Management submissions mirror a world in flux, marked by innovation, disruption, and purpose. In this conversation, she offers insights on what makes business writing impactful, timeless, and authentic.
Sonu Bhasin is an award-winning business author, family business historian, and one of India’s senior women leaders with over three decades of experience across financial and non-financial sectors. Sonu has written six bestselling business books, including ‘Lala Shri Ram: The Man Who Saw Tomorrow’, winner of the 2024 Gaja Capital Business Book Prize. She is also a columnist for The Economic Times and has been recognised among the Global 100 Most Influential for family enterprises.
The jury reads a huge number of submissions in a limited time, what was your approach to reading so widely and still giving each book its due?
I approached each book with fresh eyes, focusing on its core argument and originality. Skimming structure first, then diving deep where the writing and insights stood out, helped me balance breadth with fairness.
If literature reflects its time, what did this year’s Business & Management submissions tell you about the world we’re living in?
The submissions reflected disruption—technology, sustainability, resilience, and leadership in uncertain times. They captured a world grappling with change, yet searching for purpose.
What was the toughest part of arriving at a longlist from such a wide range of submissions?
The toughest part was letting go of strong books that didn’t quite make the cut. With such diversity, balancing innovation, relevance, and readability was a constant challenge.
If you had to describe this year’s longlist in three words, what would they be?
Bold. Insightful. Relevant.
What conversations do you think this year’s longlist adds to Indian literature, or even to our society at large?
The longlist deepens conversations around leadership, ethics, sustainability, and entrepreneurship—reminding us that business decisions shape society and values, not just profits.
In a time of endless content, what do you think makes literature still worth turning to?
Literature slows us down, offers depth in an age of distraction, and helps us think critically about the forces shaping our lives.
What, to you, makes a book unforgettable?
A book becomes unforgettable when it lingers—through an idea, a story, or a voice—that reshapes how you see the world.
As a jury member, what advice would you give to aspiring Indian writers hoping to be recognized in the coming years?
Write with authenticity, clarity, and courage. Go beyond trends—ground your work in research, lived experience, and original thought. That’s what makes a book resonate and endure.
