Eminent poet and writer K Satchidanandan on Saturday resigned from all committees of the Sahitya Akademi, saying the literary body had "failed" in its duty to stand with writers and uphold freedom of expression.
After eminent writers Nayantara Sahgal and Ashok Vajpeyi, Malayalam novelist and Aam Aadmi Party leader Sarah Joseph today said she would return the Sahitya Akademi award in protest against what she called the "growing communalism" and "life threat faced by writers" in the country after Narendra Modi government assumed office.
Kamleshwar, who was ailing for sometime, died around 8.30 pm following a heart attack, his family sources said.
History, incidentally, has often been the stick that the BJP and the JD-U have used to beat each other with.
Mukesh was most emotionally bonded to this tune, so all we will do is look at his songs engaging with this raag in films. In his fascinating book, Windows To The Soul: And Other Essays on Music, Manek Premchand reveals something we don't much know about the legendary singer, who was born 100 years ago on July 22.
A group of protesters on Saturday marched to the office of a Malayalam vernacular magazine in New Delhi raising slogans, claiming that a novel serialised in the publication defamed Hindu women and the Brahmin community.
A poet, a novelist, a columnist and writer of short stories and travelogues, Dev Sen was also known for her research on the Ramayana.
'The boys allowed themselves to become tools of politicians.' 'That age is a dangerous one, children or young men and women can easily be moulded to hate.'
Three eminent writers from Punjab announced that they were returning their Sahitya Akademi awards, while Kannada writer Aravind Malagatti resigned from the body's general council, joining the growing protest by litterateurs over "rising intolerance" and "communal" atmosphere.
'Does anyone understand India?' 'Does anyone have a larger perspective for India as a whole?' 'Today we have rulers who do not understand the ruled.'
The author was flooded with a barrage of hate messages following his tweet in support of writers who returned their Sahitya Akademi awards.
In a letter to Secretary of Sahitya Akademi on Wednesday, Bhardwaj, also attached a cheque of Rs 50,000 which he got with the award in 2004.
Eminent Punjabi writer and Padma Shri winner Dalip Kaur Tiwana decided to return her award protesting "recurrent atrocities" on Muslims in the country, as another Kannada writer joined authors giving up their Sahitya Akademi Awards against "growing intolerance".
Rijiju said that at present, there is no proposal to ban right-wing group Santhan Sanstha.
An unidentified body with two bullet injuries has been found at a village in Belagavi district and police were verifying if it resembled the sketch of one of the two killers of writer M M Kalburgi, who was gunned down at Dharwad in August.
The 91-year-old went beyond her role as a writer to help tribals in organising themselves in groups so that they could take up development activities in their own areas.
He also wrote the lyrics of Hosh waalon ko khabar kya from Sarfarosh.
The noted writer, who was awarded D.Lit (Doctor of Letters, honoris causa) by the Central University of Hyderabad few years ago, said the institution has "acted against human dignity and knowledge."
The unidentified body found with two bullet injuries at a village in Belagavi district was not of one of the two killers of writer M M Kalburgi, but a criminal who was killed by his two brothers and his friend, a senior police official said here on Sunday.
By filing his nomination as Congress president on Friday, Shashi Tharoor has shown he is no 'quockerwodger' -- a word he introduced into our lexicon which means someone acting on the instructions of an influential third party.
Eminent Gujarati novelist, poet and critic Raghuveer Chaudhary has been chosen for the prestigious Jnanpith Award for 2015, the literary organisation has announced.
Kalburgi's wife, in her plea, said that the investigation in Dabholkar and Pansare murder cases was in a "sorry state" and no progress has been made in bringing the killers to book.
The author's remarks come in the light of more than 50 historians, including the noted Romila Thapar, voicing their protest against the "highly vitiated atmosphere prevailing in the country, characterised by various forms of intolerance".
Sahitya Akademi winner Vikram Sampath has stepped down as the director of Bangalore Lit Festival in the wake of three Kannada writers deciding to boycott the event.
Gulzar said communal harmony is being harmed to such a level that people are not allowed to even talk with freedom.
Noted Kannada scholar and researcher, M M Kalburgi, who often courted controversies with his outspoken stand on various issues including idol worship, was shot dead at point-blank range by two unidentified men at his residence in Dharwad, Karnataka on Sunday.
She recited a Kashmiri verse, which was part of a poem by Sahitya Akademi award winner Pandit Dinanath Koul. She rendered the verse in both Kashmiri and Hindi. Besides, the minister quoted woman Tamil poet Avvaiyar, Tamil poet Thiruvalluvar, a verse from Raghuvamsa by Kalidasa, as well as late finance minister Arun Jaitley while talking about the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Voicing concern over incidents of intolerance, including the killing of Kannada thinker M M Kalburgi, a group of scientists has petitioned President Pranab Mukherjee, urging him to initiate "suitable actions".
Gulzar, best known for penning memorable hits like 'Tujhse Naaraaz Nahi' and 'Tere Bina Zindagi Se' besides directing critically acclaimed films like 'Aandhi' and 'Mausam', was on Saturday chosen for the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke award, the highest official recognition for film personalities in India.
Here's the lowdown from the Tamil film industry.
Amid continuing countrywide protests by writers over "rising intolerance", a young Dalit activist and writer was allegedly attacked by unidentified men whom he suspects to be right wing activists, for his "anti-Hindu" writings at Davangere in central Karnataka.
Incidents like the Dadri lynching "damage" the image of the National Democratic Alliance government, and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has nothing to do with them, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has said.
Writers from across the country gathered at Shri Ram Centre near Mandi House and marched towards Sahitya Akademi in the capital, wearing black ribbons on their heads as a sign of protest.
President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders condoled the death of Veerendra Kumar.
The official said the organisation, composed of people drawn from Hindu right groups, had around 60 members spread across at least five states but had no name.
Exquisitely shot, with shadows and light capturing the hypnotic mood of the film, Jalsaghar is a viewing treat you owe yourself.
'The dirt in the Indian Ocean must be less than the abuses Narendra Modi got from secular forces.' 'If you are going to put the blame on the central government and the RSS for every wrongdoing, then it is not going to serve any purpose, rather it will complicate the issue instead of resolving it.' 'There are fringe elements in every society, but for an ideal State it is important to finish off the fringe elements.'
Tamil writer D Jayakanthan, who charted a new course in Tamil literature, died on Wednesday night following a prolonged illness.
A group of academics and scholars on Friday expressed their outrage and anger against the "assault on academic and constitutional freedom", joining the recent protests by writers, artistes, filmmakers, historians and scientists over "rising intolerance".
'The writers fear that the fringe is threatening to become the mainstream and the liberal space -- a must for any creative expression -- is fast shrinking,' says Mohammad Asim Siddiqui.
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