Jayanta Mahapatra (22 October 1928 – 27 August 2023) was an Indian poet. He is the first Indian poet to win a

Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of the Indian government. Its off ...

award for English poetry. He was the author of poems such as "Indian Summer" and "Hunger", which are regarded as classics in modern

Indian English literature Indian English literature (IEL), also referred to as Indian Writing in English (IWE), is the body of work by writers in India who write in the English language but whose native or co-native language could be one of the numerous languages of India ...

. He was awarded a

Padma Shri The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...

, the fourth highest civilian honour in India in 2009, but he returned the award in 2015 to protest against rising intolerance in India.

Early life and education

Jayanta Mahapatra was born on 22 October 1928 into a prominent Odia Christian family. He attended Stewart School in

Cuttack Cuttack (, or officially Kataka in Odia language, Odia ), is the former capital, deputy capital and the 2nd largest city of the Indian state of Odisha. It is also the headquarters of the Cuttack district. The name of the city is an anglicised f ...

Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...

. He completed his M. Sc. in Physics from Patna University,

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

. He began his teaching career as a lecturer in physics in 1949 and taught at various government colleges in Odisha including

Gangadhar Meher University Gangadhar Meher University, Amruta Vihar, formerly Sambalpur College and Gangadhar Meher College, is a state university A public university, state university, or public college is a university or college that is State ownership, owned by ...

, B.J.B College,

Fakir Mohan University Fakir Mohan University (FM University) is a state university located at Nuapadhi, Balasore, Odisha, India. It is named after Odia writer Fakir Mohan Senapati. History This university was established by the Government of Odisha, under Section ...

and

Ravenshaw University Ravenshaw University, formerly known as Ravenshaw College, is a co-educational state university situated in Cuttack, Odisha on the eastern coast of India. Founded as Ravenshaw College in 1868, the institution became a university in 2006. The u ...

. He superannuated at Ravenshaw University (then Ravenshaw College) and retired from his government job as the Reader in Physics in 1986. Web page titled "Jayanta Mahapatra's Profile" at the

Muse India ''Muse India'' is a literary e-journal based in Hyderabad, India. Since 2005, it has appeared bi-monthly in a web edition; it has no print version. In June 2017, Muse India was approved by the UGC as a literary e-journal. Its founder and manag ...

Web site, accessed 16 October 2007 Mahapatra began his writing career in the late sixties. His short stories and poems were initially rejected by several publishers, until his poems were published in international literary journals. He was invited to participate in the

International Writing Program The International Writing Program (IWP) is a writing residency for international artists in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Since 2014, the program offers online courses to many writers and poets around the world. Since its inception in 1967, the I ...

at Iowa, which brought him international exposure.

Writing

Mahapatra was part of a trio of poets who laid the foundations of

Indian English Poetry Indian English poetry is the oldest form of Indian English literature. Henry Louis Vivian Derozio is considered the first poet in the lineage of Indian English poetry followed by Rabindranath Tagore, Sri Aurobindo, Sarojini Naidu, Michael Madhusud ...

, which included

A. K. Ramanujan Attipate Krishnaswami Ramanujan (16 March 1929 – 13 July 1993) was an Indian poet and scholar of Indian literature and linguistics. Ramanujan was also a professor of Linguistics at University of Chicago. Ramanujan was a poet, scholar, linguis ...

and

R. Parthasarathy Rajagopal Parthasarathy (born 1934) is an Indian poet, translator, critic, and editor. Early life and education Rajagopal Parthasarathy was born on 20 August 1934 in Thirupparaithurai near Tiruchchirappalli. He was educated at Don Bosco High ...

. He differed from the others in not being a product of Bombay school of poets. Over time, he managed to carve a quiet, tranquil poetic voice of his own, different from those of his contemporaries.

"Hunger"

This one of Mahapatra's best-known, most-quoted early poems, widely anthologised in Indian poetry collections. It explores the informal child sex trade. In the poet's own words, "In 'Hunger' I was writing from experience.” The poem is an expression of the poet's loneliness as a youth, as Mahapatra had a disturbed childhood.

Structure and criticism

The poem is notable for its direct approach to the taboo topic of a father prostituting his daughter. In the second line, the fisherman asks casually "will you have her?" A wide range of poetic devices are employed to bring out the entrapment of the mind in the flesh. This poem was originally a part of the poet's collection, ''A Rain of Rites''.

Other writings

Mahapatra authored 27 books of poems, of which seven are in Odia and the rest in English. His poetry volumes include ''Relationship'', ''Bare Face,'' and ''Shadow Space''. Besides poetry, he has experimented widely with myriad forms of prose. His published books of prose include ''Green Gardener'', an anthology of short stories, and ''Door of Paper: Essay and Memoirs''. Mahapatra was also a distinguished editor and was involved in the production of the literary magazine ''Chandrabhaga''. His poems have appeared in prestigious poetry anthologies like '' The Dance of the Peacock: An Anthology of English Poetry from India'', published by Hidden Brook Press, Canada. Mahapatra also translated from Odia into English, and some of his translations were published in the bi-monthly literary magazine ''

Indian Literature Indian literature refers to the literature produced on the Indian subcontinent until 1947 and in the Republic of India thereafter. The Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India has 22 officially recognised languages. Sahitya Akadem ...

''. Some anthologies of his translations have also been published.

Themes and style

Mahapatra frequently explores themes of cultural struggle, identity exploration, and displacement in his poetry. His writing captures the intricacies of current Indian society as well as the difficulties in balancing traditional ideals with changing circumstances. His utilization of imagery from ordinary life and Indian landscapes, coupled with a thoughtful and introspective voice, define his approach.

Death

Jayanta Mahapatra died of pneumonia on 27 August 2023, at the age of 94.Eminent Litterateur Jayanta Mahapatra Passes Away At 95
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Awards, recognition and legacy

In 1981 Jayanta Mahapatra won

award for his poetry book ''Relationships''. He became the first ever writer in English language to win Sahitya Akademi award. He is also a recipient of the Jacob Glatstein memorial award conferred by ''Poetry'' magazine,

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. He was also awarded the Allen Tate Poetry Prize for 2009 from ''

The Sewanee Review ''The Sewanee Review'' is an American literary magazine established in 1892. It is the oldest continuously published quarterly in the United States. It publishes original fiction and poetry, essays, reviews, and literary criticism. History '' ...

''. He received the

SAARC Literary Award SAARC Literary Award is an annual award conferred by the Foundation of SAARC Writers and Literature ( FOSWAL) since 2001 Shamshur Rahman, Mahasweta Devi, Jayanta Mahapatra, Abhi Subedi, Mark Tully, Sitakant Mahapatra, Uday Prakash, Suman Po ...

, New Delhi, 2009. He has also received Tata Literature Lifetime Achievement Award. He was conferred with a

in 2009 and awarded an honorary doctorate by

on 2 May 2009. He was also awarded a D. Lit. degree by

Utkal University Utkal University (UU) is a public university in Bhubaneswar, Khordha, Odisha, and is the oldest university in the state, and the 17th-oldest university in India. The university was established in 1943 and was operating from Ravenshaw College ...

, in 2006. In May 2019 he became the first ever Indian English poet to become a Fellow of the

. *Kanhaiya Lal Sethia Award for Poetry – 2017 (Jaipur Literature Festival) * RL Poetry Lifetime Achievement Award for Poetry, 2013,

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

. * Second Prize – ''International Who's Who in Poetry'',

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, 1970. * Jacob Glatstein Memorial Award – Poetry,

, 1975. * Visiting Writer – International Writing Program,

Iowa City Iowa City is the largest city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. At the time of the 2020 census the population was 74,828, making it the state's fifth-most populous city. The Iowa City metropolitan area, which enc ...

1976–77. * Cultural Award Visitor,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, 1978. * Japan Foundation – Visitor's Award,

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, 1980.

Poetry readings

Outside India

* University of Iowa, Iowa City, 1976 * University of Tennessee, Chattanooga, 1976 * University of the South, Sewanee, 1976 * East West Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1976 * Adelaide Festival of Arts, Adelaide, 1978 * P.E.N. Centre, Sydney, 1978 * Australian National University, Canberra, 1978 * International Poets Conference, Tokyo, 1980 * Asian Poets Conference, Tokyo, 1984

Books by Jayanta Mahapatra

Poetry

* 1971: ''Close the Sky Ten by Ten'', Calcutta: Dialogue PublicationsBibliography in Land by Jayanta Mahapatra. Authorspress 2013 * 1971: ''Svayamvara and Other Poems'', Calcutta:

Writers Workshop Writing workshop may refer to: *Writing circle, a group of like-minded writers supporting each others' work * Writers workshop (activity), a workshop format for critiquing and revising work **Authors' conference or writers' conference, a type of c ...

* 1976: ''A Father's Hours'', Delhi: United Writers * 1976: ''A Rain of Rites'', Georgia: University of Georgia Press (, ) * 1979: ''Waiting'', Pune : Samkaleen Prakashan * 1980: ''The False Start'', Bombay: Clearing House * 1980: ''Relationship'', New York: Greenfield Review Press * 2017: ''Collected Poems'', Mumbai: Paperwall Publishing * 2021: ''Random Descent'', Ketaki Foundation Trust (, ) * 2022: ''Re-reading Jayanta Mahapatra: Selected Poems'', Black Eagle Books, USA () * 2023: ''NOON : New and Selected Poems'', Ketaki Foundation Trust ()

Prose

* 1997: ''The Green Gardener'', short stories, Hyderabad: Orient Longman () * 2006: ''Door of Paper: Essay and Memoires'', New Delhi: Authorspress (, ) * 2011: ''Bhor Moitra Kanaphula'' (Odia), Bhubaneswar : Paschima Publications ()

Poetry in Odia

* 1993: ''Bali'' (The Victim), Cutack: Vidyapuri * 1995: ''Kahibi Goṭie Kathā'' (I'll Tell A Story), Āryya Prakāśana () * 1997: ''Baya Raja'' (The Mad Emperor), Cuttack: Vidyapuri, Bidyāpurī () * 2004: ''Tikie Chhayee'' (A Little Shadow), Cuttack : Vidyapuri * 2006: ''Chali'' (Walking), Cuttack: Vidyapuri * 2008: ''Jadiba Gapatie'' (Even If It's A Story), Cuttack: Friends Publishers * 2011: ''Smruti Pari Kichhiti'' (A Small Memory), Cuttack: Bijayini

Translations into English

* 1973: ''Countermeasures: Poems'', Calcutta : Dialogue * 1976: ''Wings of the Past: Poems'', Calcutta : Rajasree * 1981: ''Song of Kubja and Other Poems'', New Delhi : Samkaleen * 1994: ''I Can, But Why Should I Go: Poems'', New Delhi :

* 1996: ''Verticals of Life: Poems'', New Delhi :

* 1998: ''Tapaswini: a Poem'', Bhubaneswar :

Odisha Sahitya Akademi Odisha Sahitya Akademi () is an institution established in 1957 in Odisha for the active promotion of Odia language and literature. It was created as an autonomous literary organisation. In 1970 it was converted into a society. Activities The ...

() * 2001: ''Discovery and other Poems'', Kolkata :

* 2003: ''A Time of Rising (Poems)'', New Delhi : Har-Anand Publishers

Inclusions in anthologies

* ''A New Book of Indian Poems In English'' (2000) ed. by

Gopi Kottoor Gopikrishnan Kottoor is the pen name of Raghav G. Nair (born 1956, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala), an Indian English poet. He is the founder editor of quarterly poetry journal ''Poetry Chain''. Early life and education Kottoor studied at the Loyola ...

and published by Poetry Chain and

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

* ''Ten Twentieth-Century Indian Poets'' (1976) ed. by

and published by

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

Notes

External links

Jayanta Mahapatra's Official Homepage

Interview with Jayanta Mahapatra – A doyen of Indian-English poetry
(''The Hindu'', 2019) {{DEFAULTSORT:Mahapatra, Jayanta 1928 births 2023 deaths Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in English Recipients of the Gangadhar National Award Poets from Odisha Indian male poets English-language poets from India Odia-language poets 21st-century Indian poets International Writing Program alumni 20th-century Indian poets 20th-century Indian male writers 21st-century Indian male writers Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship Deaths from pneumonia in India Recipients of the Utkal Ratna Samman