The Hindu : National : Nirmal Verma, Kovilan elected Sahitya Akademi Fellows

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Thursday, Feb 17, 2005

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National

Nirmal Verma, Kovilan elected Sahitya Akademi Fellows

NEW DELHI, FEB. 16. Hindi writer Nirmal Verma and Malayalam novelist Kovilan were today elected Fellows of the Sahitya Akademi.

The Akademi decided to confer its highest honour on the two prolific writers of contemporary Indian Literature at a meeting of its General Council this morning. The Fellowship, which does not include any cash prize, carries a plaque and a shawl.

Nirmal Verma and Kovilan will join fellow litterateurs Amrita Pritam, U.R. Ananthamurthy, Krishna Sobti and Qurratulain Hyder into the "immortals of Indian literature."

"Nirmal Verma and Kovilan are the most senior writers in Indian literature today. They are respected across the country," said the Akademi president and Urdu writer, Gopi Chand Narang.

The Fellowship, instituted shortly after Independence, is known as the "Hall of Fame" of Indian literature. It is confined to only 21 writers at a time. The two new Fellows will fill in the place of Malayalam poet N. Balamani Amma and Hindi writer Vidya Niwas Mishra, who died recently.

Mr. Verma, who will turn 76 in April, is revered as the pioneer of the New Story in Hindi Literature. A former Communist Party member, he has authored five novels, eight collections of short stories and nine books of essays and travelogues. His books have been translated into English, Russian, German, Icelandic, Polish, Italian and French. Winner of the Jnanpith in 1999, Verma who lives in the national capital, is famous for his novels Antima Aranya and Rata ka Riportara.

Mr. Kovilan, whose real name is Kandanisseri Vattomparambil Velappan Ayyappan, is a freedom fighter, a former anti-submarine detector operator and trade unionist. He has published 11 novels, 12 collections of short stories, three collections of essays and one play. The 81-year-old writer has received several awards, including the Sahitya Akademi Award and the Vayalar Award. His novels include Ezhamedangal (1965) and Thattakam (1995). — UNI

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