New Delhi, Mar 31 (PTI) A total of 24 writers and poets in as many Indian languages received the Sahitya Akademi Award on Tuesday, the second day of the ongoing ‘Festival of Letters’ here at Kamani Auditorium.
The recipients included English author and former ambassador Navtej Sarna, who got the award for his novel ‘Crimson Spring’ and Hindi writer Mamta Kalia for her memoir ‘Jeete Jee Allahabad’.
The awardees received a casket containing an engraved copper plaque, a shawl, and an amount of Rs 1 lakh.
Poet and former president of Sahitya Akademi, Vishwanath Prasad Tiwari, said it is a duty of society to honour deserving individuals lest it becomes devoid of values.
“Giving awards and honouring deserving individuals is a responsibility of society. A society that does not respect the worthy gradually becomes devoid of values and eventually collapses. Since society itself is abstract, its representatives take on this responsibility,” Tiwari said in his address.
He said that those who create literature are deserving of honour as they serve society while simply expressing themselves.
“The representatives of a society, including institutions like the Sahitya Akademi, recognise that while many tasks we perform are for our family or livelihood, some works benefit everyone. Literature is one such field.
“Many writers may not consciously think they are serving society, since they are simply expressing themselves, but their minds are so pure and generous that their work benefits society as a whole,” he noted.
Tiwari said that in medieval times, literature flourished under royal patronage, which was extended to poets like Bihari and Padmakar.
“Keshav Das was granted 22 villages by the king of Orchha. Today, what can we really offer a writer with a sum like one lakh rupees? Even if a writer were to receive all the awards in India, it would not suffice to buy even a modest two-room flat in Delhi. Materially, we cannot give much, but we can and must give respect,” Tiwari said.
Among other awardees were Prasun Bandyopadhyay, who won it for ‘Shrestha Kabita’ in Bengali, Yogesh Vaidya for ‘Bhattkhadaki’ in Gujarati, Amresh Nugadoni for ‘Dada Seerisu Tande’ in Kannada, N Prabhakaran for ‘Maayamanushyar’ in Malayalam, Raju Baviskar for ‘Kalyanilya Resha’ in Marathi, Jinder for ‘Safety Kit’ in Punjabi, Jitender Kumar Soni for ‘Bharkhama’ in Rajasthani, and Sa Tamilselvan for ‘Thamiz Sirukathaiyin Thadangal’ in Tamil.
Pritpal Singh Betab won it for ‘Safar Jari Hai’ in Urdu, Nandini Sidha Reddy for ‘Animesha’ in Telugu, Bhagwan Atlani for ‘Waghoo’ in Sindhi, Sumitra Soren for ‘Mid Birna Chenne Saon Inag Sagai’ in Santali, and Mahamahopadhyay Sahu Bhadreshdas for ‘Prasthanacatustaye Brahmaghosah’ in Sanskrit.
Girijakumar Baliyar Singh was feliciated for ‘Padapurana’ in Odia, Prakash Bhattarai for ‘Nepali Paramparik Sanskriti Ra Sabhyata Ko Dukuti’ in Nepali, and Haobam Nalini for ‘Kanglamdriba Eephut’ in Manipuri. PTI MAH VN VN
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