Noted Bengali litterateur Mani Shankar Mukherjee, popularly known as Shankar, died at a private hospital today.
Mani Shankar Mukherjee (photo:X)
Noted Bengali litterateur Mani Shankar Mukherjee, popularly known as Shankar, died at a private hospital today.
He was 93 years old and is survived by two daughters. The nonagenarian litterateur was suffering from age related problems for quite some time.
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He received Sahitya Akademi award for his autobiographical book Eke Eke Ekashi in 2021. Shankar had received an honorary doctorate. He won the Bankim Puraskar in 1993 for his novel Gharer Madhye Ghar and Farha Blue Kazi award in 2021.
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Condoling his death, the Chief Minister in her X handle wrote: “His death has caused an irreparable loss in Bengali literature. His immortal novels, which include Chowringhee, Koto Ajanare, Jana Aranya, Shimabaddha are treasures in Bengali literature. His books on Swami Vivekananda are priceless works of Bengali literature.” Abhishek Banerjee, Trinamul Congress national general secretary also paid rich tribute to Shankar.
In a message shared on X, the Prime Minister said: “Deeply saddened by the passing of Shri Mani Shankar Mukhopadhyay Ji, fondly known as Shankar. He was a towering figure in Bengali literature whose words portrayed the lives of people with sensitivity and insight.”
“Through his unforgettable works, he impacted generations of readers and enriched India’s literary world. My heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and countless admirers. Om Shanti,” he added.
Shankar rose to fame for his novel Koto Ajanare which used to be published serially in Desh, a well known Bengali weekly magazine. Epar Bangla Opar Bangla written in the late 1960s was a very popular novel.
Satyajit Ray had made two films based on his novels Seemabaddha and Jana Aranya. Chowringhee, a film based on his novel and acted by Uttam Kumar and Anjana Bhowmick along with Utpal Dutta, is one of the most memorable movies acted by Uttam Kumar.
Shankar was associated with the Ramakrishna movement. He along with Professor Asit Kumar Bandyopadhyay and noted Vivekananda scholar Sankari Prasad Basu had brought out Biswa Bibek.
Shankar had worked as a babu (clerk) in the office of Mr Barwell, a barrister in high court.
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