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Saraid de Silva is a Sri Lankan Pākeha writer, podcaster and creative from Aotearoa New Zealand.[1] Her work pulls from her diasporic experiences as a third culture child as well as a queer woman of colour.[2]
Saraid de Silva | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1991 |
| Nationality | New Zealand |
| Alma mater | University of Auckland, Unitec Institute of Technology |
| Occupation(s) | Writer, Script Editor |
| Notable work | Amma (2024) |
de Silva was born in Kirikiriroa Hamilton in 1991, living in various places in New Zealand, and now based in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland.[2] Her mother is Sinhalese Sri Lankan and her father Pākeha.[2] de Silva was raised by her mother and Singaporean born grandmother and attended Catholic schooling in Aotearoa New Zealand.[3]
de Silva started an English Literature and Law Degree at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington, completing a year before moving to Auckland for study.[4] She graduated with a Bachelor of Performing & Screen Arts at Unitec Institute of Technology in 2012. In 2021 de Silva completed a Masters of Creative Writing at the University of Auckland.[5] She has worked on various New Zealand television shows, and currently on Shortland Street, as a story liner, scriptwriter and script editor.[6]
Plays
Podcasts
In 2019, de Silva and Chinese New Zealand filmmaker and photographer, Julie Zhu started the RNZ podcast, Conversations with my Immigrant Parents. The podcast video series explores stories of immigrant families across Aotearoa New Zealand, discussing themes such as their connections to home, their ancestry, love, familial expectations, food and racism.[7]
Books
de Silva notes the inspiration for her novel Amma, came from the grief experiences from losing her Grandmother.[11]
In 2018 de Silva's play, Drowning in Milk, received the Social Impact Award at the Auckland Fringe Festival.[2] She also won the Crystal Trust Prize for her debut novel, Amma.[5]
In 2025, The Randell Cottage Writers Trust selected de Silva as their Writer-in-Residence for 2025.[6]
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