Udayan Thakkar is a

Gujarati language Gujarati ( ; , ) is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Indian state of Gujarat and spoken predominantly by the Gujarati people. Gujarati is descended from Old Western Rājasthāni, Old Gujarati (). In India, it is one of the 22 Languages with ...

poet, writer and translator from

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. His first anthology of poems is ''Ekavan'' (1987) which won him Jayant Pathak Poetry Prize. ''Sellara'' (2003), his second anthology, was awarded the

Ushnas Prize Ushnas Prize, also known as the Shri Ushnas Paritoshik ( Gujarati: શ્રી ઉશનસ્ પારિતોષિક), is a literary award presented in Gujarat, India, by the Gujarati Sahitya Parishad (Gujarati Literary Council). The award ...

(2002–03). His other significant works include ''Jugalbandhi'' (1995) and ''Udayan Thakker Na Chuntela Kavyo'' (2012; Selected poems of Udayan Thakker). He contributed to Gujarati children's literature. He is an editor of online poetry portal ''Poetry India''.

Early life

Thakker was born on 28 October 1955 in

to Karsandas and Shantiben. His grandfather was a native of Kutch. He started writing poems during his primary education. He completed his SSC from The New Era School, Mumbai. He completed his

Bachelor of Commerce A Bachelor of Commerce (BCom or B Com) is an undergraduate degree in commerce, accounting, mathematics, economics, and management-related subjects. The degree is mainly offered in Commonwealth nations. Structure Bachelor of Commerce The Bac ...

from

Sydenham College Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics is a college located in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is affiliated to the Dr. Homi Bhabha State University. The college offers undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in management. It was awarded a ...

Career

He is a Chartered accountant and

Cost accountant Cost accounting is defined by the Institute of Management Accountants as "a systematic set of procedures for recording and reporting measurements of the cost of manufacturing goods and performing services in the aggregate and in detail. It includ ...

by qualification.
In 1974 his poem came out for the first time in ''Kavita'', a bimonthly Gujarati poetry journal. Subsequently, his poems appeared in Gujarati literary magazines including ''

Shabdasrishti ''Shabdasrishti'' (), the journal of the Gujarat Sahitya Akademi, is a Gujarati language, Gujarati literary magazine, published on the fifth of every month. The magazine was started in 1983, a year after the establishment of the Akademi. ''Shabda ...

'', ''

Kavilok ''Kavilok'' (Gujarati: કવિલોક), a publication of Kavilok Trust, is a Gujarati language bimonthly poetry journal published in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. The current editor is Dhiru Parikh and co-editor is Praful Raval. History The Ka ...

'', ''Etad'', ''Samipe'', ''

Gazalvishwa ''Gazalvishwa'' (Gujarati: ગઝલવિશ્વ) is a quarterly Gujarati ghazal poetry journal, published by Vali Gujarati Gazal Kendra from Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India since 2006. The journal publishes ghazals, ghazal reviews, critical works ...

'' and ''Navneet Samarpan''.

Works

''Ekavan'', his first anthology of poems, was published in 1987, followed by ''Sellara'' (2003) and ''Udayan Thakker Na Chuntela Kavyo'' (2012). His poems have been translated into

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

and

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 ...

and been published as a book. His works in children's literature include ''En Milake Ten Milake Chhoo'', ''Tak Dhina Dhin'' and ''Haak Chhi Hippo''.

Recognition

His poetry collection ''Ekavan'' (1987) was awarded by Jayant Pathak Poetry Award of 1987-88 and also prescribed as a textbook by

SNDT Women's University SNDT Women's University, also called by its full name Shreemati Nathibai Damodar Thackersey Women's University, is a women's university in the city of Mumbai, India. The university headquarters are at Churchgate in South Mumbai, while the ma ...

. He won

(2002–03) for his book ''Sellara'' (2003). He is a recipient of Harindra Dave Memorial Award and Best Book Prize of 2003 instituted by

Gujarat Sahitya Akademi The Gujarat Sahitya Akademi () or Gujarat Sahitya Academy, established in 1981, is a government institution dedicated to the development of the languages spoken in Gujarat, India and their literature. Gujarati, an official language of Gujarat, i ...

. In 2019, he received the

Kalapi Award The Kalapi Award (Gujarati:કલાપી ઍવોર્ડ) is an annual award given to Gujarati language, Gujarati ghazal poets. It was founded by the Indian National Theatre, INT Aditya Birla Centre for Performing Arts and Research. The award ...

given by

Indian National Theatre The Indian National Theatre (INT) is a theatre organisation and troupe founded in 1943 and based in Mumbai, India. Although performing predominantly Gujarati theatre, the troupe has also produced a number of plays in other Indian languages. In ...

. He received the 2023 Narsinh Mehta Award.

Personal life

He married Rajul in 1984 and they have two daughters, Richa and Garima.

References

External links

*
Poetry India
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thakker, Udayan Modernist writers 1955 births Living people Writers from Mumbai Gujarati-language writers Gujarati-language poets Indian male poets