Art critic, writer, translator and Sahitya Akademi Award winner Indran (B.G. Rajendran) received the Verchol Dalit Literary Award from filmmaker Pa. Ranjith on Sunday in Chennai. The award was instituted by Neelam Cultural Centre (NCC) as a part of Vaanam Arts Festival to commemorate Dalit History Month and entails a ₹1-lakh cash prize.
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“I have always thought about how the African-Americans were able to obtain political power and create their own cultural place in society. Even before I wanted to create that space, Ayya Indran had done it. I think this initiative (Vaanam Arts Festival) is also an attempt to stoke the fire against authority that the African-Americans had lit. He has worked not only in literature but also art, such as painting and sculpting, in an attempt to gain a collective perspective, similar to what the festival is trying to achieve,” Mr. Ranjith said.
Writer and historian Stalin Rajangam said though Mr. Indran had worked across many fields, the most notable has been his work as a translator. “His most important work, is Araikul Vandha Africa Vaanam (1982), a book of essays, stories and poems of 31 African countries. In 1986, he published, Katrukku Thisai Illai, an introduction to Indian literature. In 1994, he published a work of poems from third world countries (apart from India) called Pasitha Thalaimurai. His translated works created an impact. Mr. Ranjith has spoken about how African-American poems shaped him. Mr. Indran had an important role to play,” he said.
Mr. Indran said, “What I feel is a big movement is unfolding before my eyes. Ranjith is taking it forward inch by inch.”
Former IAS officer and author R. Balakrishnan participated.