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Bhisham Sahni

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Bhisham Sahni

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1915-08-08 （Rawalpindi (then British India)）
Died
2003-07-11 （Delhi, India） age 87
Nationality
Indian
Languages
Hindi, Punjabi, English, Urdu, Sanskrit
Residence History
Rawalpindi (birthplace) → Lahore (studies) → Moscow (worked as translator) → Delhi (teaching and literary work) → Punjab (teaching and theatre activities) → Bombay/Mumbai (cultural associations)

Career

Occupations
writer, playwright, actor, translator, lecturer
Active Years
1955-2003
Affiliations
Indian People’s Theatre Association (IPTA), Communist Party of India, All India Progressive Writers Association, SAHMAT (in memory of Safdar Hashmi), Afro-Asian Writers' Association

Education

Government College, Lahore
Faculty of English / Department of English
Degree: MA (English)
Country: British India (present-day Pakistan)
Master's degree earned (year not specified)
Panjab University, Chandigarh
Postgraduate / Department of English
Degree: Ph.D.
Year of Graduation: 1958
Country: India
Awarded Ph.D. in 1958

Awards

Sahitya Akademi Award
1975
Work: Tamas
Organization: Sahitya Akademi
Result: 受賞
Padma Bhushan (for literature)
1998
Category: 文学
Organization: Government of India
Result: 受賞
Sahitya Akademi Fellowship
2002
Organization: Sahitya Akademi
Result: 受賞（フェロー選出）
Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
2001
Category: 演劇
Organization: Sangeet Natak Akademi
Result: 受賞
Soviet Land Nehru Award
1983
Organization: Soviet Land
Result: 受賞
Uttar Pradesh Government Award
1975
Work: Tamas
Organization: Government of Uttar Pradesh
Result: 受賞
Shiromani Writers Award
1979
Organization: unknown
Result: 受賞
Lotus Award
1981
Organization: Afro-Asian Writers' Association
Result: 受賞
Madhya Pradesh Kala Sahitya Parishad Award
1975
Work: Hanush
Organization: Madhya Pradesh Kala Sahitya Parishad
Result: 受賞
Colour of Nation Award at International Theatre Festival (Russia)
2004
Work: Madhavi (performance by Rashi Bunny)
Category: 演劇
Organization: International Theatre Festival, Russia
Result: 受賞（演目受賞）
Shalaka Samman
1999
Organization: New Delhi (organizer unknown)
Result: 受賞
Maithili Sharan Gupt Samman
2000
Organization: Madhya Pradesh (organizer)
Result: 受賞
Sir Syed National Award for Best Hindi Fiction Writer
2002
Category: 文学
Organization: Sir Syed related organizations
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Tamas

1974 novel

A novel based on the 1947 partition riots witnessed by the author in Rawalpindi. It portrays senseless communal violence, hatred and the tragic aftermath—death, destruction, forced migration and the partition of a country.

Partitioncommunal violencedisplacement and losshuman dignity
Adaptations
  • [television film] Tamas (TV adaptation) / Govind Nihalani (1987)
Translations
  • English translation
  • French translation
  • German translation
  • Japanese translation
  • Tamil translation
  • Gujarati translation
  • Malayalam translation
  • Kashmiri translation
  • Marathi translation
  • Manipuri translation

Jharokhe

1967 novel

One of his novels portraying changes in society through detailed character sketches.

social changecharacter study

Mayyadas Ki Mari

1987 historical novel

A saga set against the decline of the Khalsa Raj and the advent of British rule, depicting shifting social orders and decadent value systems.

historychanges in social order

Kasba (screenplay)

1991 screenplay (film)

Screenplay based on Anton Chekhov's story 'In the Gully', written for Kumar Shahani's film Kasba.

Chekhovian character studydark aspects of small-town life

Bibliography

  • Bhagya Rekha (1953)
  • Pahla Patha (1956)
  • Bhatakti Raakh (1966)
  • Jharokhe (1967)
  • Kadian (1971)
  • Patrian (1973)
  • Tamas (1974)
  • Wang Chu (1978)
  • Basanti (1979)
  • Shobha Yatra (1981)
  • Nishachar (1983)
  • Pali (1989)
  • Daayan (1996)
  • Neeloo, Nilima, Nilofar (2000)
  • Aaj Ke Ateet (autobiography)
  • Balraj My Brother (biography of his brother, in English)

Adaptations

  • Tamas (TV film, dir. Govind Nihalani, 1987)
  • Kasba (screenplay for Kumar Shahani's film, 1991)

Translations by Author

  • Translations of Leo Tolstoy's short stories and the novel Resurrection into Hindi

Translations of Works

  • Tamas translated into English, French, German, Japanese and many Indian languages

Style & Themes

Literary Style
concise yet deeply humane narrative voicerealism interwoven with wit and gentle ironystrong character-driven storytelling and psychological insight
Recurring Motifs
partition and displacementlives of common peoplememory and historical traumachanges in social order

Legacy

Bhisham Sahni is regarded as one of the leading figures of 20th-century Hindi literature; his novel Tamas stands as a lasting account of the tragedy of Partition. Through his plays, translations and cultural activism he left a significant mark on Indian literature and theatre. India Post issued a commemorative stamp in his honor in 2017.

Academic Societies

  • All India Progressive Writers Association

Archives

  • Papers and manuscripts held in various literary archives and university libraries

In Popular Culture

  • The televised adaptation of Tamas sparked public debate and became a landmark work on Partition
  • Appeared as an actor in international films (e.g. Little Buddha)

Quotes

  • His voice was serene and pure, resonant with deep compassion for humanity.
    Source: Krishan Baldev Vaid (criticism) (2003)

Trivia

  • Younger brother was the noted actor Balraj Sahni.
  • Tamas won the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1975 and was adapted for television in 1987.
  • While in the USSR he translated works of Tolstoy into Hindi.
  • Died in Delhi in 2003 at age 87.
  • India Post issued a commemorative stamp in 2017.