The Sahitya Akademi Fellowship
Illuminating India's Literary Luminaries: An academic exploration of India's highest literary honor, celebrating its esteemed recipients and enduring legacy.
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Understanding the Fellowship
Highest Literary Honour
The Sahitya Akademi Fellowship represents the pinnacle of literary recognition in India, conferred by the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters. It is bestowed upon writers deemed to have made contributions of exceptional merit to Indian literature.
Prestigious Recognition
This fellowship is considered the highest honor the Akademi can bestow upon a living writer. The number of fellows is intentionally limited, often capped at twenty-one, fostering an elite group sometimes referred to as the "immortals of Indian literature."
Inaugural and Recent Awards
Established in 1968, the fellowship has a rich history. The first recipient was Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. The award continues to be presented, with recent honorees reflecting the dynamic landscape of contemporary Indian letters.
Historical Context and Purpose
Genesis and Inspiration
The establishment of the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship was influenced by international models, particularly academies of letters like the Académie française. The initial constitution envisioned a limited membership of twenty-one Fellows, designated as "literary persons of outstanding merit."
Evolution of Membership
While the initial constitution allowed for Associate and Honorary Fellows, the provisions for Associate Fellows were later deleted. The Akademi's practice has generally been to elect fellows from outside its own governing bodies, though exceptions have occurred, underscoring the emphasis on literary eminence.
Honoring Living Literary Giants
A key principle guiding the fellowship is its conferral upon living writers. This ensures that the honor recognizes contemporary contributions and allows for the ongoing engagement of these distinguished individuals with the literary community.
The Appointment Process
Recommendation and Election
The executive board of the Sahitya Akademi is responsible for recommending candidates for Fellowship and Honorary Fellowship. These recommendations are then presented to the General Council, which operates on a five-year term and holds the ultimate authority to elect fellows.
'Samvad' Events
Since 1994, the Akademi has organized 'Samvad' events, where Fellows present their work, followed by critical discussions. This initiative fosters dialogue and deeper engagement with the literary contributions of the fellows.
International Recognition
Honorary Fellowships
The Sahitya Akademi also bestows Honorary Fellowships upon distinguished literary figures who are not Indian nationals. This provision, initially limited to five, was expanded to ten, recognizing global literary excellence and fostering international cultural exchange.
Specific International Fellowships
Beyond general Honorary Fellowships, the Akademi instituted specific awards like the "Ananda Coomaraswamy Fellowship" (for Asian scholars in art, culture, and literature) and the "Premchand Fellowship" (for cultural and literary figures from SAARC countries or those researching Indian literature). These fellowships, though sometimes intermittent, highlight a commitment to broader South Asian literary scholarship.
Distinguished Fellows
The Sahitya Akademi Fellowship has been awarded to numerous eminent writers across India's diverse linguistic and literary traditions. The following table provides a comprehensive list of recipients, noting the year of conferral and the type of fellowship where applicable.
| # | Indicates a current fellow |
| † | Indicates Honorary Fellowship |
| ‡ | Indicates Premchand Fellowship |
| § | Indicates Ananda Coomaraswamy Fellowship |
| Year | Recipient | |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan | |
| 1969 | Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay | |
| D. R. Bendre | ||
| Sumitranandan Pant | ||
| C. Rajagopalachari | ||
| 1970 | Vaikom Muhammad Basheer | |
| Firaq Gorakhpuri | ||
| Vishnu Sakharam Khandekar | ||
| Viswanatha Satyanarayana | ||
| 1971 | Dattatreya Balkrushna Kalelkar | |
| Gopinath Kaviraj | ||
| Kalindi Charan Panigrahi | ||
| Gurbaksh Singh | ||
| 1973 | Masti Venkatesha Iyengar | |
| Mangharam Udharam Malkani | ||
| Nilmoni Phukan | ||
| Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi | ||
| Sukumar Sen | ||
| Vishnuprasad Ranchhodlal Trivedi | ||
| 1974 | Léopold Sédar Senghor | † |
| 1975 | T. P. Meenakshisundaram | |
| 1979 | Atmaram Ravaji Deshpande | |
| Jainendra Kumar | ||
| Kuppali Venkatappa Puttappa 'Kuvempu' | ||
| V. Raghavan | ||
| Mahadevi Varma | ||
| 1985 | Umashankar Joshi | |
| K. R. Srinivasa Iyengar | ||
| K. Shivarama Karanth | ||
| 1989 | Mulk Raj Anand | |
| Vinayaka Krishna Gokak | ||
| Laxmanshastri Balaji Joshi | ||
| Amritlal Nagar | ||
| Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai | ||
| Annada Shankar Ray | ||
| 1994 | Nagarjun | |
| Balamani Amma | ||
| Ashapoorna Devi | ||
| Qurratulain Hyder | ||
| Vishnu Bhikaji Kolte | ||
| Kanhu Charan Mohanty | ||
| P. T. Narasimhachar | ||
| R. K. Narayan | ||
| Harbhajan Singh | ||
| 1996 | Jayakanthan | |
| Senake Bandaranayake | § | |
| Edward C. Dimock | † | |
| Daniel H. H. Ingalls Sr. | † | |
| Vinda Karandikar | ||
| Chie Nakaneb | § | |
| Vidya Niwas Mishra | ||
| Subhash Mukhopadhyay | ||
| Raja Rao | ||
| Sachidananda Routray | ||
| Azad N. Shamatov | § | |
| Krishna Sobti | ||
| Ji Xianlin | † | |
| Kamil Zvelebil | † | |
| 1999 | Syed Abdul Malik | |
| K. S. Narasimhaswamy | ||
| Gunturu Seshendra Sarma | ||
| Rajendra Shah | ||
| Ram Vilas Sharma | ||
| N. Khelchandra Singh | ||
| 2000 | Ramchandra Narayan Dandekar | |
| Rehman Rahi | ||
| 2001 | Ram Nath Shastri | |
| 2002 | Kaifi Azmi | |
| Eugene Chelyshev | † | |
| Govind Chandra Pande | ||
| Nilmani Phookan | ||
| Bhisham Sahni | ||
| Vassilis Vitsaxis | † | |
| 2004 | Kovilan | |
| U. R. Ananthamurthy | ||
| Vijaydan Detha | ||
| Shankha Ghosh | ||
| Bhadriraju Krishnamurti | ||
| Amrita Pritam | ||
| Nirmal Verma | ||
| 2005 | Intizar Hussain | ‡ |
| 2006 | Manoj Das | |
| Vishnu Prabhakar | ||
| 2007 | Ronald E. Asher | † |
| Anita Desai | # | |
| Kartar Singh Duggal | ||
| Ravindra Kelekar | ||
| 2009 | Gopi Chand Narang | |
| Ramakanta Rath | ||
| 2010 | Chandranath Mishra Amar | |
| Kunwar Narayan | ||
| Bholabhai Patel | ||
| Kedarnath Singh | ||
| Khushwant Singh | ||
| 2013 | Raghuveer Chaudhari | # |
| Arjan Hasid | ||
| Sitakant Mahapatra | # | |
| M. T. Vasudevan Nair | ||
| Asit Rai | # | |
| Satya Vrat Shastri | ||
| Abhimanyu Unnuth | † | |
| 2014 | Santeshivara Lingannaiah Bhyrappa | # |
| C. Narayana Reddy | ||
| 2016 | Nirendranath Chakravarty | |
| Gurdial Singh | ||
| 2017 | Namvar Singh | |
| 2019 | Jayanta Mahapatra | |
| Padma Sachdev | ||
| Vishwanath Prasad Tiwari | # | |
| Nagen Saikia[18] | # | |
| 2020 | Velcheru Narayana Rao[19] | † |
| 2021 | Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay[20] | # |
| M. Leelavathy[21] | # | |
| Ruskin Bond | # | |
| Vinod Kumar Shukla | # | |
| Bhalchandra Nemade | # | |
| Tejwant Singh Gill | # | |
| Rambhadracharya | # | |
| Indira Parthasarathy | # | |
| 2024 | Ajeet Cour | # |
| Chandrashekhar Kambar | # | |
| Pran Kishore Kaul | # | |
| Ved Rahi | # | |
Scholarly Resources
Primary Sources
The information presented here is drawn from foundational texts detailing the history and operations of the Sahitya Akademi. Key references include:
- George, Rosemary Marangoly (2013). Indian English and the Fiction of National Literature. Cambridge University Press.
- Rao, D.S. (2004). Five Decades of The National Academy of Letters, India: A Short History of Sahitya Akademi. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi.
Official Documentation
For the most current and detailed information regarding the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship, including nomination processes and recent awardees, consulting the official Sahitya Akademi website is recommended.
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References
References
- Out of three recipients, only Bandaranayake and Shamatov availed the fellowship and spent several weeks in India doing literary research. Nakane did not avail the fellowship.
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Academic Disclaimer
Important Notice
This content has been generated by an AI model, drawing upon publicly available data, primarily from Wikipedia. While efforts have been made to ensure accuracy and adherence to academic standards, it is intended for informational and educational purposes only.
This is not professional literary critique or advisory content. The information provided should not substitute consultation with literary scholars, cultural historians, or official sources. Always verify critical details with primary or authoritative secondary sources.
The creators of this page are not liable for any inaccuracies, omissions, or actions taken based on the information presented herein.