In 2022, British author Hanif Kureishi was at his partner Isabella D'Amico's apartment in Rome, preparing to open a beer and watch a football match, when he suddenly collapsed. He recalls not being entirely clear about what happened next, but it seems he stood up and fell face-first, resulting in a fractured neck.
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02-23, 2025Kureishi survived the accident but suffered a severe spinal cord injury, leading to quadriplegia. He awoke to find himself unable to use his arms and legs, but he could still speak, so he began to write. He dictated these blog posts to Isabella, who sat by his bedside and rapidly typed them into her phone.
These posts, which Kureishi shared on social media, resonated widely. He confessed that it was a very strange period, filled with pain, isolation, and immersion in depression and self-pity. At the same time, a large number of readers began to respond to what he was writing. He wrote in this way every day, and his three sons soon joined in, helping him with his writing.
These daily records formed the basis of Kureishi's 2024 memoir, "Shattered," a diary-like work documenting his accident and ongoing recovery process. Writing—recording his experiences and connecting with readers—has become an integral part of his rehabilitation. Kureishi stated that, fortunately, despite his injury, he can still write, continue his work, and, in fact, he may be doing it better now than in the past. "It's a terrible irony that this injury has brought out the best in me."
Kureishi's writing career began in 1985 when he wrote the Oscar-nominated screenplay for the film "My Beautiful Laundrette." But what truly made him a literary star was his debut novel, "The Buddha of Suburbia," published in 1990. Based on Kureishi's experiences growing up in South London, the novel depicts race, sex, class, and music in 1970s London from the perspective of 17-year-old Karim. Upon publication, the novel became an international bestseller and won the Whitbread Award for Best First Novel. David Bowie—who attended the same school as Kureishi—created music for the 1993 BBC adaptation of the series.
Thirty years later, "The Buddha of Suburbia"—adapted into a stage play by Kureishi and British director Emma Rice in 2024—continues to captivate readers. Kureishi said, "People tell me they've read the book, they love it, they're amused by it, it means something to them, and that really makes me happy. As a writer, that's exactly what you want to do—write a book that people still like 30 years later. It's a great achievement."
When Kureishi was writing "The Buddha of Suburbia," the London literary scene was thriving. He became friends with Salman Rushdie, who had won the 1982 Booker Prize for "Midnight's Children" and was known for hosting lavish parties. Kureishi recalled, "He was an incredible figure in London at the time. He was very intelligent, a great storyteller. He had read all the books, seen all the movies, and was very loquacious." Kureishi found himself mixing with Martin Amis, Julian Barnes, Kazuo Ishiguro, and Jeanette Winterson, among others, who were part of a "huge explosion of British writing" and were making waves around the world. The ambitious Kureishi was eager to join their ranks.
Kureishi said he wanted to break new ground by writing about race in Britain in a way that had never been done before. "I (felt) that if I didn't do it, I would be left behind, and I wanted to keep up with these people. I wanted to write something original, like Salman was doing." The "Buddha" in the novel's title refers to Karim's father, Haroon, who was modeled after Kureishi's father, who immigrated to Britain in the 1940s to study law. But instead of obtaining a degree and returning to Pakistan as expected, Kureishi's father chose his own path, dropping out of university, marrying a white British woman, and starting a family.
In the novel, Haroon—like Kureishi's father in real life—develops an interest in Eastern philosophy and soon becomes a popular guru-like figure in the community. Karim finds his father embarrassing, but others are drawn to Haroon's mysticism, which caters to the interest in Indian spirituality that followed the Beatles' famous trip to an Indian retreat in 1968. However, at the same time, Britain was witnessing a terrible rise in racist attacks against South Asians. Kureishi recalled, "We were chased down the streets by skinheads. We were afraid of being beaten and abused. In South London at that time, you had to be very careful."
Living in this politically charged environment as a mixed-race child was challenging. Kureishi said, "On the one hand, you're a piece of trash that white nationalists are always chasing. On the other hand, you become a source of wisdom talking about anti-materialism and meditation." Kureishi said his father was delighted to be the subject of the novel, would sit in the front row at readings, and tell people that he was the Buddha of Suburbia.
While the novel is semi-autobiographical, it does not entirely conform to reality. Kureishi said, "I cut out the boring parts and left in the sex and drugs and rock and roll. Karim has a good time. He seduces people, he goes to parties, he takes drugs, he goes to rock concerts, and then he becomes an actor. He has a lot of adventures." But real life was calmer. In the 70s, London was full of creativity, but it all felt far removed from the dull conformity of suburban life. "You're lying in your room listening to the radio, knowing that people in London are having a good time, while you're struggling to do your homework."
Like other famous adolescent narrators such as Holden Caulfield in "The Catcher in the Rye," Karim's adolescent perspective also offers criticism of the adult society around him. Kureishi said, "When you get to that age, everything that adults do is completely stupid. That's where the humor in the book comes from... looking at adults and being completely baffled by the stupid things they do."
