Smita Agarwal | |
---|---|
![]() Grover in 2017 | |
Born | |
Nationality | Indian |
Occupation(s) | Poet and a Painter |
Teji Grover is a Hindi poet, [1] fiction writer, [2] translator and painter. According to poet and critic Ashok Vajpeyi, "Teji Grover shapes her language away from the prevalent idiom of Hindi poetry. In her poetry language acquires a form which is unique..." [3] Her poems have been translated into many Indian and foreign languages.
Grover's fiction is known for its blending of dream and reality. Polish Hindi scholar Kamila Junik writes about her novel Neela (Blue), "All the characters write. All the events are being written. The existence is being written as well. There is no other world beyond writing." [4]
Through her translations, Teji Grover has introduced modern Scandinavian writers and poets to Hindi readers, such as Knut Hamsun, Tarjei Vesaas, Jon Fosse, Kjell Askildsen, Gunnar Björling, Hans Herbjørnsrud, Lars Amund Vaage, Edith Södergran, Harry Martinson, Tomas Tranströmer, Lars Lundkvist, and Ann Jäderlund, as also the French writer Marguerite Duras.
She is also an abstract painter, using organic and natural colours. [5]
Teji Grover was born on 7 March 1955 at Pathankot, in the state of Punjab in India. [6] She taught English literature at MCM DAV College for Women at Chandigarh for over two decades before early retirement in 2003. [ citation needed ]She is based in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
Teji Grover's individual collections of poetry are:
The second edition of the collection Lo Kaha Sambari was published by Vani Prakashan, New Delhi, in 2016 ( ISBN 978-93-5229-362-9). The second edition of the collection Maitri was published by Vani Prakashan, New Delhi, in 2020 ( ISBN 978-93-89915-25-9).
Her selected poems were published in 2021. The volume is titled Kathputli Kee Aankh: Chuni Hui Kavitaen (Surya Prakashan Mandir, Bikaner, 2021); ISBN 978-93-87252-94-3.
Her poems also figured in the following books:
The most recent publication of her poems in Hindi was in the online literary magazine Samalochan. [14]
Grover has published two books of fiction:
The second edition of her novel came out in 2016 (Vani Prakashan, New Delhi; ISBN 978-81-7055-668-8).
Grover has published a collection of essays, memoirs and travelogues and another collection of essays on folktales:
Grover has also published the following book for children:
Teji Grover's poems have been translated into Indian and foreign languages including Marathi, English, Swedish, Polish, Norwegian, Catalan and Estonian. English translations of her poems have been included in the following anthologies:
Her poems figure in the following anthologies in foreign languages:
Her poems have also appeared in a Marathi anthology of Hindi poetry: Sangini niwadak, Hindi stree kavita, ed. and trans. by Chandrakant Patil (Manovikas Prakashan, 2012; ISBN 9789381636404).
The international literary journals in which the English translations of her poems have appeared include Poetry International Rotterdam, Rhino: The Poetry Forum, Chase Park, Modern Poetry in Translation, Hindi: Language, Discourse, Writing, Indian Literature, Paintbrush, Aufgabe and dialog. [19]
The non-English international journals in which her poems have been published include Lyrikvannen (Swedish), Karavan (Swedish) and Sirp (Estonian). [20]
In 2018 an issue of the Swedish journal Karavan was focused on her writing and her art-work. The issue carried an interview with her, translation of a long poem by her and two articles on her paintings. [21]
Her novel Neela appeared in English translation, by Meena Arora Nayak, in the journal Hindi: Language, Discourse, Writing in 2000. [22]
Two of her short stories, "Bhikshuni" and "Suparna", have also been translated into and published in English. [23]
Her short story "Su" has been translated into Croatian and published in the anthology Lotosi od neona: indijski autori o gradovima i drugim ljubavima edited by Lora Tomas and Marijana Janjic and published by Studio Tim, Rijeka, and Udruga Lotos, Zagreb, in 2017 ( ISBN 9789537780661).
Teji Grover has translated into Hindi the following works:
Apart from these books, she translated the following book into English:
Rajkamal Prakashan, New Delhi, 2021.
From among Teji Grover's essays in Hindi, the following two essays have been translated into and published in English: "The Blue House" and "Looking at the Body of a Poem: The Journey of a Hindi Poet". [24]
Further, the following essays were written and published originally in English:
From among these essays, "A Necessary Poem", "The Fragrance of Delgadina’s Soul", "Weak Pink Color: Translating Ann Jäderlund on the Ghats of the Narmada" and "A Poet Caged in the Act of Translation" have been translated into and published in Swedish. [31]
Another of her essays, "Song of the Cows: Translating Lars Amund Vaage's 'Cows' into Hindi", has been translated into and published in Norwegian as part of an anthology of essays on the Norwegian author Lars Amund Vaage's work. [32]
Teji Grover has edited five books for children in Hindi, all of them published by Eklavya, Bhopal. These are:
In addition, she has compiled and edited a collection of ghazals by well known Hindi shayar Harjeet Singh:
In 1999, Teji Grover read her poems at Bengt Berg's Book Cafe Heidruns in Torsby, Sweden. [33] In 2008 she read her poems at the Baltic Center for Writers and Translators, Visby, Sweden, at their annual International Poetry Festival. [34] In the same year, she read her poems in the Olav Hauge Centenary Festival at the poet's birthplace, Ulvik, in Norway. [35] In 2011 she had readings of her poetry at Trondheim, Norway, during the IndiaFestival that was being held there. [36] Further, in 2014 she read her poems at the Writers' House at Tallinn, Estonia. [37]
In 1997, Teji Grover visited Sweden as part of a delegation of 10 Indian writers. [38] Subsequently, she was one of the Indian collaborators of the Indo-Swedish Translation Project, 1998–2009. Under the aegis of this project she translated three volumes of poetry from the Swedish into Hindi (see "Translations by Teji Grover" above.) [39] In 2008, she lectured at the Book Fair at Gothenburg on her translation of the Swedish poet Ann Jäderlund's poetry into Hindi. [40]
Grover has held the following solo shows of her paintings:
Her paintings were also part of the following group shows:
K. Satchidanandan is an Indian poet and critic, writing in Malayalam and English. A pioneer of modern poetry in Malayalam, a bilingual literary critic, playwright, editor, columnist and translator, he is the former editor of Indian Literature journal and the former secretary of Sahitya Akademi. He is also social advocate for secular anti-caste views, supporting causes like environment, human rights and free software and is a well known speaker on issues concerning contemporary Indian literature. He is the festival director of Kerala Literature Festival.
Mahadevi Verma was an Indian Hindi-language poet, essayist, sketch story writer and an eminent personality of Hindi literature. She is considered one of the four major pillars of the Chhayawadi era in Hindi literature. She has been also addressed as the Modern Meera. Poet Nirala had once called her "Saraswati in the vast temple of Hindi Literature". Varma had witnessed India both before and after independence. She was one of those poets who worked for the wider society of India. Not only her poetry but also her social upliftment work and welfare development among women were also depicted deeply in her writings. These largely influenced not only the readers but also the critics, especially through her novel Deepshikha.
Sachchidananda Hirananda Vatsyayan, popularly known by his pen name Agyeya, was an Indian writer, poet, novelist, literary critic, journalist, translator and revolutionary in Hindi language. He pioneered modern trends in Hindi poetry, as well as in fiction, criticism and journalism. He is regarded as the pioneer of the Prayogavaad (experimentalism) movement in modern Hindi literature.
Ramdhari Singh, known by his pen name Dinkar, was an Indian Hindi language poet, essayist, freedom fighter, patriot and academic. He emerged as a poet of rebellion as a consequence of his nationalist poetry written in the days before Indian independence. His poetry exuded Veer Rasa, and he has been hailed as a Rashtrakavi and Yuga-Chāraṇa on account of his inspiring patriotic compositions. He was a regular poet of Hindi Kavi Sammelan and is hailed to be as popular and connected to poetry lovers for Hindi speakers as Pushkin for Russians.
Kaifi Azmi was an Indian Urdu poet. He is remembered as the one who brought Urdu literature to Indian motion pictures. Together with Pirzada Qasim, Jaun Elia and others he participated in many memorable Mushaira gatherings of the twentieth century. He was also a communist who wanted to see India one day become a socialist state. His wife was theatre and film actress Shaukat Kaifi.
Dilip Purushottam Chitre was one of the foremost Indian poets and critics to emerge in the post Independence India. Apart from being a notable bilingual writer, writing in Marathi and English, he was also a teacher, a painter, a filmmaker and a magazine columnist.
Jayanta Mahapatra was an Indian poet. He is the first Indian poet to win a Sahitya Akademi award for English poetry. He was the author of poems such as "Indian Summer" and "Hunger", which are regarded as classics in modern Indian English literature. He was awarded a Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian honour in India in 2009, but he returned the award in 2015 to protest against rising intolerance in India.
Govind Mishra is an Indian novelist, who has written more than 53 books. He was also a civil servant with Indian Revenue Service (IRS) and retired as Chairperson, Central Board of Direct Taxes in 1997. Over the years, he has written 14 novels, 14 short story collections, five travelogues, five literary essays collection, a poem collection and 2 story books for children.
Dr. Vartika Nanda is an Indian prison reformer and media educator. She has experience of the industry and academia and has dedicated her life to the cause of prison reforms. She is the recipient of Stree Shakti Puraskar, the highest civilian honour for female empowerment in India for her work in media and literature. Her name entered Limca Book of Records twice.
Kunwar Narayan was a poet in Indian literature in Hindi. He read and traveled widely and wrote for six decades. He was linked to the New Poetry movement.
Geet Chaturvedi is a Hindi poet, short story author, lyricist, screenwriter and novelist. Often regarded as an avant-garde writer, he was awarded the Bharat Bhushan Agrawal Award for poetry in 2007 and Krishna Pratap Award for Fiction in 2014. He lives in Bhopal, India. He is active both as a fiction writer and critic. In 2011, The Indian Express included him in a list of the 'Ten Best Writers' of India. His poems have been translated into 24 languages worldwide. His critically acclaimed novel 'Simsim' was longlisted for the JCB Prize for Literature 2023. Simsim was a recipient of the PEN/Heim Translation Fund Grants as well.
Dushyant Kumar Tyagi was an Indian poet of modern Hindi literature. He is famous for writing Hindi Ghazals, and is generally recognised as one of the foremost Hindi poets of the 20th century.
Uday Prakash is a Hindi poet, scholar, journalist, translator and short story writer from India. He has worked as administrator, editor, researcher, and TV director. He writes for major dailies and periodicals as a freelancer. He has also received several awards for his collection of short stories and poems. With Mohan Das he received Sahitya Academi Awards in 2011. He is the first author to return his Sahitya Akademi award on September 3, 2015 against the killing of M. M. Kalburgi that initiated a storm of national protests by writers, artists,scholars and intellectuals.
Ashok Vajpeyi is an Indian Hindi-language poet, essayist, literary-cultural critic, apart from being a noted cultural and arts administrator, and a former civil servant. He was chairman, Lalit Kala Akademi India's National Academy of Arts, Ministry of Culture, Govt of India, 2008–2011. He has published over 23 books of poetry, criticism and art, and was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award given by Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, in 1994 for his poetry collection, Kahin Nahin Wahin. His notable poetry collections include, Shaher Ab Bhi Sambhavana Hai (1966), Tatpurush (1986), Bahuri Akela (1992), Ibarat Se Giri Matrayen, Ummeed ka Doosra Naam (2004) and Vivaksha (2006), besides this he has also published works on literary and art criticism: Filhal, Kuchh Poorvagrah, Samay se Bahar, Kavita ka Galp and Sidhiyan Shuru ho Gayi Hain. He is generally seen as part of the old Delhi-centric literary-cultural establishment consisting of bureaucrat-poets and academicians like Sitakanta Mahapatra, Keki Daruwalla, J.P.Das, Gopi Chand Narang, Indra Nath Choudhari and K.Satchidanandan.
Ramesh Chandra Shah is an Indian poet, novelist, critic and the author of Sahitya Academy Award winning novel, Vinayak. He was honoured by the Government of India in 2004 with Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award.
Rustam Singh is an Indian poet, philosopher, translator and editor. He writes poetry in Hindi and theoretical and philosophical papers and essays in English. He is regarded as an important Hindi poet of this period. His poems have been translated into many Indian and foreign languages including English, Telugu, Marathi, Malayalam, Panjabi, Swedish, Norwegian and Estonian. Apart from his books, his poems have appeared in many important literary journals and magazines, such as Sakshatkaar, Poorvagrah, Bahuvachan, Jansatta, Pratilipi, Indian Literature, International Quarterly, Aufgabe, LyrikVannen etc. The most recent publication of his poems in Hindi was in the online literary magazines Samalochan, Janakipul and Sadaneera.
Sunita Jain (1941–2017) was an Indian scholar, novelist, short-story writer and poet of English and Hindi literature. She was a former professor and the Head of the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. She published over 80 books, in English and Hindi, besides translating many Jain writings and some Hindi literature into English. She is featured in the Encyclopedia of Post-Colonial Literatures in English and was a recipient of The Vreeland Award (1969) and the Marie Sandoz Prairie Schooner Fiction Award. The Government of India awarded her the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri in 2004. In 2015 she was awarded the Vyas Samman by the K.K. Birla foundation for outstanding literary work in Hindi. In 2015 she was awarded an honorary D.Litt. from the University of Burdhwan, West Bengal.
Yatindra Mishra is an Indian poet, editor, and music and cinema scholar.
Duni Chand Chambial, is a contemporary bilingual poet from Himachal Pradesh and a critic who, as an editor in chief, has been editing Poetcrit, a reviewed international journal for more than three decades. Chambial appeared as an Indian English poet by publishing his first volume, Broken Images, in 1983. He rooted himself as a poet in Indian English Poetry with the continuous publication of his several other English poetry collections and one in Hindi. His poems have been translated into many languages.
Vijay Kumar Roy is an academician, poet and editor from Bihar, India. Presently, he is working as an assistant professor of English at Northern Border University, Saudi Arabia