Keshava Guha is an Indian writer and editor, who rose to prominence as a fiction author with his debut novel, Accidental Magic, in 2019. He is the son of a notable historian and all-round intellectual Ramachandra Guha.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Keshava Guha was born in 1990 (age 34 years; as of 2024) in Delhi, India. He was raised and schooled in Bangalore (now Bengaluru) by a family of intellectuals in which both his mother and father enjoyed reading. From 2008 to 2013, he earned his BA in history and politics at Harvard University, Cambridge, United States, and an MA, from 2017 to 2018, in Creative and Life Writing at Goldsmiths, University of London. Keshava pursued a Columbia Publishing course at the Graduate School of Journalism, Columbia University. From 2021 to 2024, he did a PhD in Philosophy. Currently, Keshava Guha is based in London, United Kingdom.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 11″
Hair Colour: Salt & Pepper
Eye Colour: Black
Family & Caste
Keshava Guha belongs to a Tamil Brahmin family, where everyone is passionate about reading.
Parents & Siblings
Keshava Guha’s father, Ramachandra Guha, is a noted Indian historian and intellectual. His mother, Sujata Keshavan, is a reputed businesswoman, who founded Ray + Keshavan and Varana. She is a professional graphic designer, who is presently a Creative Director at a fashion clothing brand, Varana that is founded to uplift Indian artisanal skills.
(From Right to Left) – Keshava Guha, Sujata Keshavan Guha, Ira Guha, and Ramachandra Guha
Wife & Children
Keshava Guha is unmarried and has no children.
Other Relatives
Keshava Guha’s maternal grandfather, Narasimha Keshavan, was a reader and designer. His maternal grandmother, Shanti Chari, was also a well-read lady, who as an undergraduate student of literature and philosophy at St. John’s College, Agra, India, won the college’s inaugural Drew-Sully Prize for philosophy.
Shanti Chari, maternal grandmother of Keshava Guha
Maternal grandparents of Keshava Guha on their wedding day, 1949. With them are her father sitting in a kurta pyjama, her niece and nephew, and her beloved little sister Geeta (far right)
Keshava’s paternal grandfather, Subramaniam Ramdas Guha, was a research professional and director at the Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, India, and his paternal grandmother was a high school teacher.
Career
Writer
Right after finishing his studies, Keshava Guha worked as a freelance journalist to engage and focus himself on writing his own stories. Apart from his blogs and columns on different subjects, fiction novel writing is his forte.
Fictions
- Accidental Magic is Keshava Guha’s debut fiction book, which was launched in 2019 at the Bangalore Literature Festival. This novel is a treat for Harry Potter fans in which Keshava has used the Harry Potter nostalgia as a bridge to bring his characters together. The underlying theme of the novel is an exploration of questions of loneliness, belonging, and friendship across cultures and generations.
Keshava Guha’s debut novel, Accidental Magic
- The Tiger’s Share is a fiction story written in a novel style by Keshava Guha as an assignment of his master’s course on Creative and Life Writing at Goldsmiths, University of London. The plot is set in contemporary Delhi.
Journals
Keshava Guha has worked for numerous Indian and International publications as a columnist; his writings range from literature, culture, sports, and politics. In the list are his contributions to NDTV, Frontline India, Scroll.in, Hindustan Times, Wall Street Journal, Business Standard, Die Welt, Time Out, Caravan, and the Night Watchman.
Book Reviews
Keshava Guha is associated with The Hindu in India and Literary Review in the UK, where he writes in-depth essays about his reviews on contemporary and popular books and writers.
Editor
Keshava Guha worked as a senior editor for fiction novels at Juggernauts Books, from 2019 to 2021.
Favourites
- Books: Achieving Our Country by Richard Rorty and works of Swami Vivekananda and Mahadev Govind Ranade
- Novelists: Penelope Fitzgerald and Shirley Hazzard
- Poet: Philip Larkin
Facts/Trivia
- Keshava Guha is a sports fan, with cricket and football being his favourites. Right from childhood, books and cricket have been his two favourite things.
A childhood picture of Keshava Guha, holding a book and a bat, his two favourite things
- Keshava Guha is an animal lover. He had a pet dog named Pamba; he lost Pamba in 2022.
Keshava Guha with his dog Pamba
- Like his father, Keshava Guha is known for his public conversation on the game of cricket. He was part of a session titled Cricket: Facts And Fiction at the Jaipur Literary Fest.
- Keshava Guha is a fan of the U.K. quiz competition T.V. show ‘Jeopardy ‘ and has been a contestant in it.
Keshava Guha playing The Jeopardy
