Jnanpith Award for Amar Kant: ‘Happy,but under pressure’

“Does the government care? It is not only about writers. Young scientists,researchers and other such people — they all need support. Otherwise,how will you get fresh writing,new innovations and discoveries? These people need to experience the world and need to travel far and wide,” said Kant at his modest home at Panch Pushp Apartments here.

Nearly three years ago,fighting illness and a bad financial situation,Kant was so fed up with the apathetic attitude of the government that he contemplated selling his Sahitya Akademi Award,which he had won in 2007 for his novel “Inhi Hathiyaaron Se”. He had then said he wanted the government to “serve him” in the same way as he had served the people all these years through his works.

Kant shares the Jnanpith award with another Hindi literary giant,Sri Lal Shukla,who wrote “Raag Darbari”.

In a statement issued on Tuesday,Bharatiya Jnanpith said: “Kant,a noted Hindi author,(wrote) path-breaking short stories like ‘Hatyaare’,’Dopahar ka Bhojan’ and ‘Diptee Kalaktari’ (that) have found place in the syllabi of several Indian universities.”

A man who himself never wanted to be in the good books of the establishment,Kant said the government definitely had a role to play in ensuring that a writer has better facilities to create the kind of literature he wants to.

The feeling of being left to fend for himself seems to have subsided to some extent. “I am able to write now. There are some problems. But whenever I want to write,I write it myself,” said Kant,who was diagnosed with a bone infection in in 1985.

Having supported his entire family with his writings,Kant had found it difficult to keep things going.

Talking about the award,Kant said it was a happy moment but it also puts one under more pressure. “After this,either I don’t write at all or I write something that is better than what I have written so far; something that can be more useful to the society,” said Kant.

His son Arvind Bindu,who had been with Kant ever since he developed the bone problem,said his father never asked for charity.

“Three years ago,whatever he said about selling the Sahitya Akademi award was just the call of anguished man. He never claimed any freedom fighter’s pension. He never accepted high value offers. But his view was that his rightful dues as a writer in terms of royalty or other aspects,which the government is normally expected to take care of,should come to him,” said Bindu,a publisher.

Kant,meanwhile,said the new breed of writers was good and there was a need for the common people to buy more books and read more.

“How many books do you buy or read yourself? Why don’t you set aside some amount to buy at least a couple of books every month? If you don’t have time,your children will read them?” he said.

The octogenarian writer has begun writing a novel based on the lives of journalists (Kant himself was a journalist and spent 35 years as editor of Hindi magazine Manorama),tentatively titled “Khabar ka Suraj”.