Ramin Razaghpour, a young Afghan writer, has won first place in the 23rd edition of the Sadegh Hedayat Short Story Competition. This prestigious Persian-language literary contest, which is considered one of the most important in its field, saw participation from 866 writers worldwide this year.
Razaghpour, who currently resides in Kabul, was awarded the Sadegh Hedayat Trophy for his short story titled "People Hide Behind Their Words." In this competition, Nargess Bagheri and Sheyda Sharifi secured second and third places, respectively.
According to Jahangir Hedayat, the secretary of the Sadegh Hedayat Office, writers from Iran, Afghanistan, Turkey, the United States, Germany, Austria, France, Italy, Canada, Northern Ireland, and Sweden participated in this year’s event.
The Sadegh Hedayat Short Story Competition is held annually, offering Persian-language writers an opportunity to showcase their unpublished works. The entries go through a two-stage review and judging process before the winners are announced.
This marks the third time that an Afghan writer has won an award in this competition. Previously, Homeira Qaderi won second place in 2004 with her story "If It Rained Again," and Samira Kowsari won first place in 2022 with her story "Fifteen Minutes of the Right to Touch."
