Published Books
Uyirtha Gyayaru, Memoir (2020).
The University of Nebraska at Omaha will soon make this most recent piece in Tamil available for purchase in English under the title 'Easter Sunday'.
Nonfiction, Ummath (2014).
Ummath was published in India, where it was awarded "Best Novel of the Year 2014" and was also translated into numerous other languages. Available from HarperCollins Publishers in English is A Novel of Community and Conflict.
Panikkar's Pethi, Fiction (2018)
The Indian Tamil Nadu Government Library Order was given to the vibrant novel Panikkar Pethi. 'The Elephant Tamer's Granddaughter', an English translation of this Tamil classic, will soon be available for purchase.
Irusi, Stories (2022).
There are 14 short stories in this book. These tales, which centre on the misery of women, describe how minority Sri Lankan women are subjected to violence and societal neglect.
Ovva, Poem (2014)
Siragu Mulaitha Pen, Poem 2012
Through her skillful rhymes, Sharmila Seyyid, a compelling voice in the world of poetry, creates a tapestry of feelings and experiences. Seyyid's poetry transcends boundaries and connects with readers deeply. She investigates concepts of love, loss, identity, and the many complexities of human existence via her expressive writing. Each sentence is a stroke on the canvas of the soul that invites us to pause and consider the complexity and beauty of life.
- Words Without Borders
Against Our Will, Essay Collections (2022)
Survival and Denial, Essay Collection (2022)
Refuse to Concede, Essay Collections (2022)
These three essay collections, entitled BOOKS EXPLORE FEMINISM ACROSS CLASS, RACE, GENDER IDENTITY, ABILITY, AND SEXUALITY, FOLLOW, HELP FOSTER GREATER INCLUSION AND CHANGE.
Presentations and Conference Appearances
- Presenter, “Bibliotherapy on Human Rights”. Race, Religion & Social Justice Conference, June 2023, Omaha, Nebraska.
- Commentator, The Human Rights Forum "Women, Literature, and Human Rights: A Conversation with Sharmila Seyyid" March 8, 2022, University of Nebraska at Omaha
- Presenter, "Human Rights and Resistance: A case of South Asia", December 1, 2022, University of Washington Bothell
- Presenter, "Entangled Memories of Violence: Rise and Heal", September 28, 2022, Goldstein Center for Human Rights and the Sam and Frances Fried Holocaust and Genocide Academy
- Panelist, "Tamil Poetry : Tradition and Modernity", Kerala Literature Festival, 16 - 19,2020, Kerala, India
- Keynote Speaker, Diaspora Literature: Reviving the Forgotten History" January, 6 & 7, 2020, The American College, Madurai, India
- Presenter, "Responding to Easter Attacks; Role of New Social Imaginaries", May 28,2019, International Centre for Ethnic Studies, ICES, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
- Panelist, "The Opportunities and Challenges for Reconciliation and Peace in Sri Lanka", November 27, 2019, Forum for Peace, Mannar, Sri Lanaka
- Commentator, "Role of Translation in Reconciliation", December 4, 2019, Colombo, Sri Lanka
- Panelist, "The Bound Word: On Creativity and Censorship” HC Indian Language Festival 'Samanvay" ,November 27, 2015, Delhi, India.
- Panelist, "Insider/Outsider: Writing India's Dreams and Realities" HC Indian Language Festival 'Samanvay" ,November 26, 2015 Delhi, India.
- Presenter, "Image of Women in Tamil Literature", Hindu Literature Festival, January, 15, 2014, Chennai, India
- Presenter and Panelist, "Poetry with Prakriti", Prankriti Foundation Poetry Festival, December, 17 - 21, 2012 Chennai, India
Exhibition
ABOUT THIS EVENT:
Entangled Memories of Violence: Rise and Heal is an exhibition that pays credit to resilience and the courage to heal. The gallery has been created to showcase Sri Lankan writer and activist Sharmila Seyyid's literary work and activism.
From September 1, 2022, through May 10, 2023, the exhibit was on display on the main level of the Criss Library at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
Location: Dr. C.C. and Mabel L. Criss Library, Main Floor, 6401 University Dr N, Omaha, NE 68182
Sponsors: Leonard and Shirley Goldstein Center for Human Rights, Sam and Frances Fried Holocaust and Genocide Academy, UNO Criss Library
Due to the ongoing interest in the exhibition, which had a four-month planned run, it was extended for an additional four months. Notably, Omahans and members of the academic community both expressed great satisfaction with the exhibition.
Recognition
The Department of Tamil Literature at the University of the SRM Institute of Science and Technology in India has adopted my work as part of its curriculum for 2013/2014
The poem is from my second collection of poetry, "Ovva" (which means incomparable).
The poem "That Ancient Village" was chosen for the curriculum. The poem translated into English by Gita Subramaniam
This first ever anthology of Sri Lankan and diasporic poetry included three of my poems. It brings to light a long-neglected national literature, and reshapes our understanding of migrational poetics and the poetics of atrocity. Poets long out of print appear beside exciting new talents; works written in the country converse with poetry from the UK, the US, Canada and Australia. Poems in traditional and in open forms, concrete poems, spoken word poems, and experimental post-lyric hybrids of poetry and prose, appear with an introduction explaining Sri Lanka’s history.
The poems in Lost Evenings, Lost Lives, a bilingual anthology of Tamil poetry relating to the war in Sri Lanka, are arranged in chronological order with the aim of charting some of the main events which occurred during the course of nearly thirty years of war, and which the 32 anthologised poets record as vivid eye-witness accounts. These poems reflect the pain and trauma of the day-to-day experience of war as the Tamil people lived through them – the terror, the constant presence of danger, the fear of rape, the sudden disappearances, the death of loved ones, displacement, exile – but they also express courage and hope. Together, these poems can be read as an alternative history of the war. Two of my poems featured in this anthology.
Additionally, my poetry was included in the 2013 Prakriti Foundation poetry collection.
My poems were featured in 2014 on Words Without Borders, the leading platform for a global literary conversation.