Writer Nagabhushana wins Sahitya Akademi award

Bengaluru: Writer DS Nagabhushana has won the Sahitya Akademi award for 2021 in the biography category for his book ‘Gandhi Kathana’.
The Sahitya Akademi on Thursday announced its annual awards in 20 languages. Seven books of poetry, two novels, five short story collections, two plays, a biography, an autobiography, a work in criticism, and a work of epic poetry were chosen.Awards in Gujarati, Maithili, Manipuri and Urdu languages will be announced later.
Kannada writer Basu Bevinagida won the Bal Sahitya Puraskar 2021 for his novel ‘Odi Hoda Huduga’, while Kannada poet H Lakshmi Narayana Swamy was chosen for Yuva Puraskar 2021 for ‘Togala Cheelada Karna’.
“I am simultaneously happy and surprised at getting the award,” Nagabhushana told TOI. “Gandhi Kathana has come at a time when Mahatma Gandhi is being increasingly criticised. I have tried to analyse him through a socialist lens. The 720-page book focuses on the makings of Gandhi that began in South Africa.”
“There is an ongoing debate on the ideological differences between Gandhi and BR Ambedkar. However, the dialogue between the two is not simple to derive any straight meaning from. It is a complex dialogue I have researched and highlighted in the book,” he said.
Rare pictures on the life and work of Gandhi have been incorporated into the book. Nagabhushana said 22,000 copies have been sold so far.
The Sahitya Akademi award comes with a casket containing an engraved copper plaque, a shawl, and an amount of Rs 1 lakh The Yuva Puraskar and Bal Sahitya Puraskar winners will be presented with a casket each containing an engraved copper plaque and a cheque for Rs 50,000.