New Delhi, Jan. 31 -- Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jhumpa Lahiri on Friday issued a sharp warning against the use of language as a nationalist project, arguing that efforts to yoke language to nationhood were historically violent and politically dangerous.

Responding to a question from Hindustan Times on the growing promotion of Hindi and the politics of language in India and South Asia, Lahiri said such projects demanded active resistance.

"Language as a nationalist project is very dangerous," she said. "We must be vigilant and actively resist these projects of intertwining language and the nation-state. This has only led to tragedy."

Lahiri was speaking at the Italian Embassy Cultural Centre in New Delhi, where questions of language...