Uday Prakash (born 1 January 1952) is a

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

, scholar,

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

translator Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''trans ...

and

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

writer from India. He has worked as administrator,

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, organization, a ...

, researcher, and TV director. He writes for major dailies and periodicals as a

freelancer ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance w ...

. He has also received several awards for his collection of short stories and poems. With ''Mohan Das'' he received Sahitya Academi Awards in 2011. He is the first author to return his Sahitya Akademi award on September 3, 2015 against the killing of M. M. Kalburgi that initiated a storm of national protests by writers, artists, scholars and intellectuals.

Personal life

Background

Prakash was born on 1 January 1952, in the backward village of Sitapur, Anuppur,

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...

, India. He was raised by and given primary education there by a teacher. (fro
Faces of the Millennium
.) He graduated in Science and obtained his master's degree in

Hindi Literature Hindi literature () includes literature in the various Central Indo-Aryan languages, also known as Hindi, some of which have different writing systems. Earliest forms of Hindi literature are attested in poetry of Apabhraṃśa such as Awad ...

, receiving a Gold Medal from Saugar University in 1974. From 1975 to 1976, he was a research student at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU); He was imprisoned as a passionate communist party member. He later lost interest in political ideology.

Career

In 1978 Prakash taught as an assistant professor at JNU, and its

Imphal Imphal (; , ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Manipur. The metropolitan centre of the city contains the ruins of Kangla Palace (officially known as Kangla Fort), the royal seat of the former Kingdom of Manipur, surrounded by a ...

''Center for Post Graduate Studies''. In 1980 he left

academia An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

, to become Officer-on-Special-Duty with the

Department of

Culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

. At the same time, he was Controlling Officer of the Bhopal Rabindra Bhawan, and assistant editor of ''Poorvagraha'', a journal of Hindi

literary criticism A genre of arts criticism, literary criticism or literary studies is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical analysis of literature's ...

. (He was later critical of the Hindi literary establishment including Ashok Vajpeyi, who he worked for at ''Poorvagraha''.) From 1982 to 1990, Prakash worked in

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 ...

newspapers; first as a subeditor of the Hindi news weekly ''Dinmaan'', and later as Assistant Editor of the ''Sunday Mail''. In 1987 becoming assistant professor at the School of Social Journalism (on deputation). In 1990 he joined ITV, (Independent Television), and became head of the '' PTI TV'' Concept and Script Department. Since 1993, he has been a full-time freelance writer. Prakash was the editor of the monthly

English language English is a West Germanic language that developed in early medieval England and has since become a English as a lingua franca, global lingua franca. The namesake of the language is the Angles (tribe), Angles, one of the Germanic peoples th ...

magazine ''"Eminence"'' (published in

Bangalore Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

) until April 2000. He also participated in the international poetry festivals and seminars. He has also made documentary films with Sahitya Akademi, like on Dharamvir Bharti. Prakash returned his Sahitya Akademi award in 2015, to protest the murder of rationalist academic M. M. Kalburgi.

Bibliography

''Peelee Chhatri Wali Ladki'' (2001) is Prakash's best known, and longest continuous story. Often called a "novella", Prakash calls it "a long short story" – ''Cheeni Baba'' will be his "first

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

". His 2006

novella A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most novelettes and short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) ...

''Mohan Das'' has been translated into English, seven Indian languages, – Other translations by: Haider Jafri Syed (Urdu), Yagyesh ( Nepali), Rabinder Singh Bath (Punjabi), Vanita Sawant (

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India **Marathi people (Uttar Pradesh), the Marathi people in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Mar ...

), Manu Dash ( Oriya), R.P. Hegade (

Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...

), and Venugopalan ( Telugu) and adapted by the author for the "Mohandas" screenplay (2009). Poetry collections * ''Suno kārīgara'' (1980), ''Abootar Kabootar'' (1984), ''Raat Mein Harmonium'' (1998), ''EK Bhasha Hua Karati Hai'' (2009) Short story collections He is most famous as a short story writer, with well-known work like ''Warren Hastings ka Saand'', and its stage version by director Arvind Gaur. * ''Dariyayi Ghoda'' (1982), ''Tirichh'' (1990), ''Aur Ant Mein Prarthna'' (1994), - (Doktor Wakankar : Story of an Upright Hindu). The German Translation placed third by the international jury in the 2009 World Book Fair, Frankfurt, in the 'Best Seven' from Latin America, Africa and Asia category. * ''Paul Gomra Ka Scooter'' (1997)., ''Duttatrey Ke Dukh'' (2002) * ''Areba–Pareba'' (2006), (O
''"Areba Pareba"''
''Mangosil'' (2006) Non-fiction * ''Eeshwar Ki Aankh'' (critical writings, essays and interviews, 1999) * ''Nai Sadi Ka Panch Tantra'' (Essays, Comments and Criticism, 2008) * ''Apani Unaki Baat'' (Book of

Interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" re ...

s) Translations by Prakash Prakash has translated works by many International poets and writers into Hindi, including Pablo Neruda,

Federico García Lorca Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca (5 June 1898 – 19 August 1936) was a Spanish poet, playwright, and theatre director. García Lorca achieved international recognition as an emblematic member of the Generation of '27, a g ...

, H. Luis Borges,

Paul Éluard Paul Éluard (), born Eugène Émile Paul Grindel (; 14 December 1895 – 18 November 1952), was a French poet and one of the founders of the Surrealist movement. In 1916, he chose the name Paul Éluard, a matronymic borrowed from his maternal ...

, C.P. Cavafy, Adam Jędrzejewski, and Tadeusz Różewicz. Some notable examples: * ''Kala Anubhav'' : An English book (''Art Experience'') on

Indian Aesthetics Indian art evolved with an emphasis on inducing special spiritual or philosophical states in the audience, or with representing them symbolically. Rasas in the performing arts The theory of rasa (aesthetics), rasas still forms the aesthetic ...

by Prof. Hariyanna (1982). * ''Amritsar : Indira Gandhi Ki Aakhiri Ladai'' 1985 (translated from ''Amritsar: Mrs. Gandhi's

Last A last is a mechanical form shaped like a human foot. It is used by shoemakers and cordwainers in the manufacture and repair of shoes. Lasts come in many styles and sizes, depending on the exact job they are designed for. Common variations ...

Battle''). *

Romain Rolland Romain Rolland (; 29 January 1866 – 30 December 1944) was a French dramatist, novelist, essayist, art historian and Mysticism, mystic who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1915 "as a tribute to the lofty idealism of his literary pro ...

's '' Inde'' : Two volumes (from French) * ''Lal Ghas Par Neele Ghode'': A Russian

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

by Mikhail Shatrov, 1988. (Converted into a

Teleplay A teleplay is a screenplay or script used in the production of a scripted television program or series. In general usage, the term is most commonly seen in reference to a standalone production, such as a television film, a television play, or a ...

) * ''Ek Purush Dedh Purush'' : Translated Prasanna's

Kannada language Kannada () is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, an ...

play for the NSD repertory production, directed by Ram Gopal Bajaj. His translation of Milorad Pavić's novel ''Landscape painted with tea'' is forthcoming. Translations of Prakash's work He is read in all Indian languages, and his translated fiction regularly features in English and German collections,

magazines A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

, and complete texts: # ''Rage, Revelry and Romance'' : Translated by Robert Hueckstedt, 2003 # ''Der Goldene Gürtel'' : Translated by Lothar Lutze, 2007 # ''Short shorts, long shots'' : Translated by Robert Hueckstedt and Amit Tripuraneni # ''The Girl With the Golden Parasol'' : Translated by Jason Grunebaum, published by Penguin India, 2008. (Grunebaum received a 2005 PEN grant for the translation.). It is available in other languages, including three separate

Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...

translations, and German. # ''Doktor Wakankar. Aus dem Leben eines aufrechten Hindus'' : Prize-winning translation of ''Aur Ant Mein Prarthana'' Translated into German (by Andre Penz). #'' The Walls of Delhi'' : Translated to English by Jason Grunebaum, 2012. A collection of three stories.
Mohandas
Translated to Maithili by Vinit Utpal, 2013, published from Sahitya Academy, New Delhi, India

Films and media

'Sahitya Akademi film's on writers Prakash has produced several films about important Hindi writers such as Ram Vilas Sharma. In an interview, Varun Grover, the lyricist of the 2015 movie Masaan, recounted that they had wanted to use one of Uday Prakash's compositions titled "Kuch Ban Jate Hain" (from Abootar Abootar). The song was set to music, but at the end was not include in the film. Ultimately another song "Tu Kisi Rail Si" was used in its place (based on a poem by Dushyant Kumar).

Awards

*1980 Bharat Bhushan Agrawal Puraskar Awarded for the poe
"Tibet"
/ref> *1990 Shrikant Verma Memorial Award, for the short stories collections ''Tirich'' *1996 Muktibodh Samman, a National Award by Madhya Pradesh Sahitya Parishad for ''Aur Ant Mein Prathna''. *1999 Sahityakaar Samman, by the Hindi Akademi *2003 Pahal Samman. A prestigious award for contemporary literary contribution. *2009 SAARC Literary Award *2013 DSC Prize for South Asian Literature, shortlist, ''The Walls of Delhi'' (Translated by Jason Grunebaum) *2013

Jan Michalski Prize for Literature Jan Michalski Prize for Literature (French: Prix Jan Michalski) is a Swiss literary prize for any work of fiction or non-fiction published anywhere in the world in any language. It is meant to recognize authors from around the world and world liter ...

, finalist, ''The Walls of Delhi''

References

External links

* *
Uday Prakash at Kavita Kosh
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prakash, Uday 1952 births Film producers from Madhya Pradesh Indian male journalists Scholars from Madhya Pradesh Indian male poets Living people People from Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh Artist authors Journalists from Madhya Pradesh Poets from Madhya Pradesh Translators to English Translators to Hindi Translators from English Translators from Hindi Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Hindi