Nadeesha Uyangoda

Nadeesha Uyangoda (born 15 March 1993) is a Sri Lankan-Italian writer, author and podcaster, whose work focuses on migration and identity. She is the author of L'unica persona nera nella stanza (The Only Black Person in the Room) and Corpi che contano (Bodies that Matter), as well as the host of the podcast Sulla razza (About Race). She has won multiple awards, including the Anima Prize for Literature.

Biography Born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, in 1993, Uyangoda fled the country with her family due to its civil war and arrived in Italy at the age of six. Her writing focuses on migration and identity.

Her stories have appeared in Al Jazeera English, Open Democracy, The Telegraph. She is a columnist of the Italian magazine Internazionale.

Career L’unica persona nera nella stanza

Uyangoda is the author of L'unica persona nera nella stanza (The Only Black Person in the Room), Taronna also compared it to works by Zadie Smith, Chimanda Ngozi Adichie and Taiye Selasi.

L'unica persona nera nella stanza was translated in Spanish and co-published by Esto no es Berlin and Los libros de La Mujer Rota.

Sulla Razza (About Race)

In April 2020 she created the podcast Sulla razza (About Race), sponsored by Juventus F.C. and produced by One Podcast. It focuses on racism, in particular translating and explaining the vocabulary used in Anglo-American contexts to discuss race. This language gap is something that Uyangoda felt was holding back racial discourse in Italy.

In 2023 she curated a section of BookPride, a leading independent book fair in Milan.

Uyangoda is a member of the scientific board of MUDEC, the Museum of Cultures of the Milan City Council.

Works Fiction

Acqua Sporca (Dirty Water), Einaudi, 2025

Non-fiction L'unica persona nera nella stanza (The Only Black Person in the Room), 66thand2nd, 2021 Corpi che contano (Bodies that Matter), 66thand2nd, 2024

Short stories and longforms

Sostantivo, femminile, singolare, in K Volume 4 - Felicità, curated by Nadia Terranova, Linkiesta, 2022 Microeconomie etniche, in The Passenger - Milano, Iperborea, 2022 La distanza tra il piatto e noi, in L'integrale, rivista di pane e cultura - Straniero, curated by Diletta Sereni, Iperborea, 2023 La lingua che abitiamo, on Lucy sulla cultura, 2023

Awards L'unica persona nera nella stanza Premio Anima per la Letteratura (Anima Prize for Literature) – 2021 Premio Rapallo Speciale "Anna Maria Ortese" (Anna Maria Ortese Rapallo Special Prize) – 2021 Premio Sila nella sezione "Economia e Società" (Sila Prize for 'Economy and Society') – 2022 Premio Giuditta esordiente (Giuditta Esordiente Award) – 2022