Hindi writer Krishna Sobti selected for 53rd Jnanpith Award

Sobti’s choice of subjects range from the India-Pakistan partition, and relationships between man and woman, to the changing dynamics of the Indian society and the gradual deterioration of human values. (Illustration: Subrata Dhar)

Krishna Sobti, the famed Hindi litterateur, has been selected for this year’s Jnanpith Award, the Jnanpith Selection Board announced on Friday. The board said in a statement, “The Jnanpith Selection Board has announced the recipient of the 53rd Jnanpith Award for the year 2017 today in a meeting. It went to eminent Hindi Litterateur Krishna Sobti.”

“Sobti is a path breaking novelist. She has immensely enriched Hindi literature,” the statement by the board chaired by noted scholar, writer and critic Namwar Singh, said. Others on the decision making body included Girishwar Misra, Shamim Hanfi, Harish Trivedi, Suranjan Das, Ramakant Rath, Chandrakant Patil, Alok Rai, C Radhakrishnan, Madhishudhan Anand and Leeladhar Mandloi.

Sobti’s choice of subjects range from the India-Pakistan partition, and relationships between man and woman, to the changing dynamics of the Indian society and the gradual deterioration of human values. Some of her celebrated works include ‘Daar Se Bichhudi’, ‘Mitro Marjani’, ‘Zindaginama’, ‘Dil-o-Danish’, ‘Badalom ke Ghere’, ‘Ai Ladki’ and ‘Gujarat Pakistan Se Gujarat Hindustan’. Several of her works have been translated into other Indian languages and also in Swedish, Russian besides English.

92-year-old Sobti who was born in Gujrat, currently in Pakistan, is known for experimenting with new writing styles and creating “bold” and “daring” characters in her stories who were ready to accept all challenges. Born in 1925, her language is highly influenced by the intermingling of Hindi, Urdu and Punjabi cultures.

Sobti has been the recipient of many coveted awards in the past including Hindi Akademi Awards, Shiroman Awards, Maithli Sharan Gupt Samman, Sahitya Akademi Fellowship and Padma Bhushan.