Manoj Das Chasing the Rainbow

Manoj Das presented Sahitya Akademi fellowship

KalingaTimes Correspondent Bhubaneswar

Noted writer Manoj Das was conferred with the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship, country's highest literary honour, by the Sahitya Akademi at a function held here on Thursday. Das, who has authored of over 70 books written in English and Oriya, is amongst few best storytellers in the world.

Presenting the citation, Gopi Chand Narang, President of Sahitya Akademi, said Das was a prolific writer who could narrate a story without losing the Indian charm and ethos. 'He could be the best storyteller after R. K Narayan,' Narang said.

Born in Balasore district of Orissa, the writer is presently based in Pondicherry and teaching English in Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education. His works includes Temples of India (1970), Stories of Light and Delight (1970), Tales from Many Lands (1972), Persian Tales of Wit and Delight (1972) and A Bride inside a Casket (1981). His latest publications include 'The Escapist', 'My Little India', 'The Lady Who Died One-and-a-half Times and Other Stories' and 'Chasing the Rainbow'. He has received many prestigious awards including Padma Shri, Saraswati Samman, Sarala Puraskar and Utkal Ratna and D. Litt from a number of universities.