imported>Mani barathi anbu at 02:35, 17 July 2021

2021-07-17T02:35:33Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=January 2019}}
{{cleanup biography|date=March 2017}}
{{infobox person
|name = Ashokamithran
|image = File:Asokamitran.jpg
|birth_name = Thyagarajan
|birth_date = {{Birth date|df=yes|1931|9|22}}
|birth_place = [[Secunderabad]], [[Madras Presidency]], [[British India]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2017|3|23|1931|9|22}}
|death_place = [[Chennai]], [[Tamil Nadu]]

| nationality = Indian
|occupation = Novelist
| children = 3
| awards = [[Sahitya Akademi Award]]
}}
'''Ashokamitran''' (22 September 1931 – 23 March 2017) was the pen name of '''Jagadisa Thyagarajan''', an Indian writer regarded as one of the most influential figures in post-independent [[Tamil literature]]. He began his prolific literary career with the prize winning play "Anbin Parisu" and went on to author more than two hundred short stories, and a dozen novellas and novels.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/three-popular-ashokamitran-books-now-in-english-116081500171_1.html|title=Three popular Ashokamitran books now in English|agency=Press Trust of India|date=2016-08-15|work=Business Standard India|access-date=2017-03-23}}</ref> A distinguished essayist and critic, he was the editor of the literary journal "Kanaiyaazhi". He has written over 200 short stories, eight novels, some 15 novellas besides other prose writings. Most of his works have also been translated into English and other Indian languages, including Hindi, Malayalam, and Telugu.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/society/history-and-culture/an-interview-with-ashokamitran/article17433708.ece|title=‘I’ll write as long as I’m physically able to’|last=Charukesi|work=The Hindu|access-date=2017-03-23|language=en}}</ref>

== Life ==
Born in [[Secunderabad]] in 1931, Ashokamitran spent the first twenty years of his life there.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://thewire.in/46932/reading-ashokamitran-a-subtle-genius-of-the-normal-and-the-absurd/|title=Reading Ashokamitran, a Subtle Genius of the Normal and the Absurd - The Wire|last=Ahmad|first=Omair|website=thewire.in|language=en-GB|access-date=2017-03-23}}</ref> His real name was Jagadisa Thyagarajan.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/acq/ovop/delhi/salrp/ashokamitran.html|title=Ashokamitran - Tamil Writer: The South Asian Literary Recordings Project (Library of Congress New Delhi Office)|website=www.loc.gov|access-date=2017-03-23}}</ref> He moved to Chennai in 1952 after the death of his father, following an invitation from his father's friend, the film director [[S. S. Vasan|S.S.Vasan]] to come work at Vasan's Gemini Studios.<ref name=":1" /> He worked for more than a decade at the Gemini Studios.<ref name="Literary">{{cite news|title=Down a literary lane|url=http://www.hindu.com/fr/2004/02/13/stories/2004021301710600.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041124161413/http://www.hindu.com/fr/2004/02/13/stories/2004021301710600.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=24 November 2004|date=13 February 2004|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|location=India}}</ref> While working there he often acted as an "unofficial scribe" (in his own words) for people working in the film industry, and said that his efforts consisted of "writing most heart rending appeals for loans and salary advances."<ref name=":0" /> He also began writing about his experiences working in the film industry in a set of columns for the ''Illustrated Weekly of India;'' these columns later became his book, ''My Years with Boss'' (sometimes translated as F''ourteen Years with Boss'').<ref name=":1" /> The 'boss' referred to was [[S. S. Vasan|S.S. Vasan]], the owner of Gemini Studios.<ref name=":1" />

His experiences here and his interaction with people from the Tamil filmdom later took the form of his book "My Years with Boss". In 1966, he left his work in the film industry, and has since said that he felt he "should not continue with a system which had built-in inequities."<ref name=":0" />

It was from 1966 that he became a full-time writer and he took up the [[pseudonym]] of "Ashokamitran" . In 1973 he was invited and took part in the [[International Writing Program]] at the [[University of Iowa]], United States. In the 1980s most of his works were translated into English and he and his works became well-known all over India. Some of his works were translated into other European languages and most Indian languages as well.

Ashokamitran died on 23 March 2017 at the age of 85. At the time of his death, he was survived by his wife and three sons.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/books/tamil-writer-ashokamitran-passes-away/article17616921.ece|title=Tamil writer Ashokamitran passes away|last=Desk|first=Internet|work=The Hindu|access-date=2017-03-23|language=en}}</ref>

== Writing style ==
His works are characterized by simplicity and clarity of thought and drew from his professional and personal experiences. His novel ''Karainta nizhalkal'' (Star-Crossed), for instance, drew from his experiences with working in public relations in the film industry at Gemini Studios.<ref name=":0" /> He has cited a number of writers as influencing his style, including Tamil writers [[B. R. Rajam Iyer|B.R. Rajam Iyer]], [[Subramania Bharati|Subramania Bharti]], and K N Subramaniam.<ref name=":0" /> Most of his stories revolve around the life of middle class people. Other than Karaintha nizhalkal; Thanneer, Otran and Pathinetaavathu atchakodu are his masterpieces.

== Legacy ==
Ashokamitran's life and work have been the subject of three documentary films, made by Amshan Kumar, Kandasamy, and [[Gnani Sankaran|Gnani]].<ref name=":0" /> His novel ''Thanneer'' is being adapted for film by the director, [[Vasanth]].<ref name=":0" />

== Honours and awards ==
Ashokamitran was given many awards and honours. Some of them are:
* The K.K. Birla Fellowship to do a study in comparative Indian literature.{{Citation needed|date=March 2017}}
* 1973-74: The University of Iowa Creative Writing Fellowship.<ref name=":2" />
* 1992: Lily Memorial Award.<ref name=":2" />
* 1993: ''Ramkrishna Jaidayal Harmony Award'' by the Dalmia Trust for promoting religious harmony.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dalmiabrothers.com/oufawards.htm|title=Recipients of Harmony Awards|publisher=Organisation of Understanding and Fraternity — Dalmia Bros.|accessdate=26 July 2013}}</ref>
* 1996: Akshara Award.<ref name=":2" />
* 1996: [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] for ''Appavin Snegidhar,'' a collection of short stories.<ref name="Indian">{{cite news|title=Writers celebrate Sahitya Akademi Foundation Day|url=http://newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/article1500171.ece|newspaper=Indian Express|date=14 March 2013|location=Chennai, India}}</ref>
* January 2007: The MGR Award.{{Citation needed|date=March 2017}}
* May 2012: ''NTR National Literary Award'' by NTR Vignan Trust.<ref name="NTR">{{cite news|title=NTR National Literary Award for Ashokamitran|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ntr-national-literary-award-for-ashokamitran/article3384822.ece|newspaper=The Hindu|date=4 May 2012|location=Hyderabad, India}}</ref>
* 10 February 2013: The inaugural Kaa Na Su award at a function in Chennai.{{Citation needed|date=March 2017}}
* 30 March 2013: National award instituted by the Bharatiya Bhasha Parishad at Kolkata.{{Citation needed|date=March 2017}}

== Works ==

=== Novels ===
* Anbin Parisu (1953)<ref name="Literary" />
* Thanneer<ref name="NTR" />
* Manasarovar<ref>{{cite news|title=A very human picture|url=http://www.thehindu.com/books/a-very-human-picture/article809294.ece|newspaper=The Hindu|date=3 October 2010|location=India}}</ref>
* 18-vadhu Atchakkodu (1977) - (This has been translated into English in the name "The Eighteenth Parallel"). This novel is a kind of biographical look back at his early years at Secundarabad. It describes the life of a young man set against the backdrop of the political unrest that was developing in Hyderabad in the late Forties.<ref>{{cite news|title=A writer of two cities|url=http://hindu.com/thehindu/mp/2002/09/12/stories/2002091201160100.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030624165101/http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mp/2002/09/12/stories/2002091201160100.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=24 June 2003|date=12 September 2002|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|location=Hyderabad, India}}</ref>
* My Years with Boss<ref>{{cite news|title=The Boss Will See You Now|url=http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?285083|newspaper=Outlook|date=6 May 2013|location=India}}</ref>
* ''Karainta nilalkal'' (translated to English as Star Crossed, by V. Ramnarayan.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://franklin.library.upenn.edu/record.html?id=FRANKLIN_4523231|title=Franklin Record - Star-crossed = Karainda nizhalgal / Ashokamitran ; translated from Tamil by V. Ramnarayan.|website=franklin.library.upenn.edu|access-date=2017-03-23}}</ref>
* ''Otran''<ref name=":0" />
* ''Paavam Dalpathado'' (translated to English as The Ghost of Meenambakkan by N. Kalyan Raman)<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tracking-indian-communities/translating-ashokamitrans-words-and-his-silences/|title=Translating Ashokamitran’s words – and his silences|work=Times of India Blog|access-date=2017-03-23|language=en-US}}</ref>
*Indru
*India 1944-48
*Aagayathamarai

=== Short stories ===
* Appavin Snegidhar.<ref name="Indian" /> In 1995, he won the [[List of Sahitya Akademi Award winners for Tamil|Sahitya Akademi Award]] for this collection of short stories.{{citation needed|date=January 2019}}
* ''Still Bleeding from the Wound''<ref name=":1" /> (a collection of stories translated to English by N. Kalyan Raman).
*Ammavukku oru naal

== See also ==
* [[Jayakanthan]]
* [[Sundara Ramaswamy]]
* [[Ka. Naa. Subramanyam]]
* [[Jeyamohan]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110713201016/http://tamilnanbargal.com/node/34668 Ashokamitran page in Tamil Friends]
* [http://solvanam.com/?issue=100 Ashokamitran Special edition by Solvanam]
* [http://epaper.newindianexpress.com/129028/The-New-Indian-Express-Coimbatore/26062013#page/17/1 B. Meenakshi, Sundaram Portraying Realities of Contemporary Life]

{{Sahitya Akademi Award For Tamil}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashokamitran,}}
[[Category:1931 births]]
[[Category:2017 deaths]]
[[Category:Tamil-language writers]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Tamil]]
[[Category:International Writing Program alumni]]

Ashokamitran - Revision history

imported>Mani barathi anbu at 02:35, 17 July 2021