Ila Arab Mehta

Ila Arab Mehta (born 16 June 1938) is a Gujarati novelist and story writer from Gujarat, India.

Ila Arab Mehta
Ila Arab Mehta in 1995
Ila Arab Mehta in 1995
Born (1938-06-16) 16 June 1938
Mumbai
OccupationNovelist and short story
LanguageGujarati
NationalityIndian
Signature

Biography

Mehta was born on 16 June 1938 at Bombay (now Mumbai) to Gujarati writer Gunvantrai Acharya. Her family belonged to Jamnagar. She completed her schooling from Jamnagar, Rajkot and Mumbai. She completed BA with Gujarati in 1958 from Ramnarain Ruia College and MA in 1960. She taught at Ruia College from 1960 to 1967 and later at St. Xavier's College, Mumbai from 1970 to her retirement in 2000.[1][2][3][4]

Works

In her early days, Mehta wrote in Akhand Anand, Navneet and Stree Jeevan magazines. She has written several novels including Trikonni Tran Rekhao (1966), Thijelo Akar (1970), Radha (1972), Ek Hata Diwan Bahadur (1976), Batris Laksho (1976), Varasdar (1978), Avati Kalno Sooraj (1979), Batris Putalini Vedana (1982), Ane Mrityu (1982), Dariyano Manas (1985), Vasant Chhlake (1987), Nag Pariksha, Panch Pagala Prithvi Par (1995), The New Life (2004), Parpotani Aankh (1988), Zili Me Kumpal Hathelima (2007). Jaherkhabarno MAnas (1985), Shabne Naam Hotu Nathi (1981) are novels with different subjects.[1][2][4] Her novel Vaad (2011) is translated in English as Fence (2015) by Rita Kothari.[5] Her novel Batris Putlini Vedna is a story of women's struggle against injustice done to them and their attempt to establish their own identity. It centred around Anuradha, a main protagonist of the novel, and presents her anger against male chauvinism in the same way as Kundanika Kapadia's Saat Paglan Akashman (Seven Steps in the Sky; 1994).[6]

Ek Cigarette Ek Dhupsali (1981), Viena-Woods (1989), Bhagyarekha (1995), Balavo Balvi Balvu (1998), Yom Kippur (2006). Ila Arab Mehtano Varta Vaibhav (2009) are her collections of stories. She has edited Varsha Adaljani Shreshth Vartao (1991), selected stories of Varsha Adalja.[1][2][4]

Mrityu Naam Parpota Mare (1984) is her compilation of literary works by various authors on death.[2]

Her writing is considered feminist.[7][8]

Awards

She has been awarded by Gujarat Sahitya Akademi, Maharashtra Gujarati Sahitya Akademi, and Gujarati Sahitya Parishad.[2]

Personal life

She married Arab Mehta, a doctor, in 1964 and has a son, Salil and a daughter, Sonali. She lives in Mumbai. Her father Gunvantrai Acharya and her younger sister Varsha Adalja are also Gujarati writers.[2][8]

References
  1. Brahmabhatt, Prasad (2010). અર્વાચીન ગુજરાતી સાહિત્યનો ઈતિહાસ - આધુનિક અને અનુઆધુનિક યુગ (History of Modern Gujarati Literature – Modern and Postmodern Era) (in Gujarati). Ahmedabad: Parshwa Publication. pp. 265–266. ISBN 978-93-5108-247-7.
  2. "Meet The Author: Ila Arab Mehta" (PDF). Sahitya Akademi, Delhi. 26 March 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 December 2016.
  3. K. M. George (1992). Modern Indian Literature, an Anthology: Surveys and poems. Sahitya Akademi. p. 143. ISBN 978-81-7201-324-0.
  4. Kartik Chandra Dutt (1999). Who's who of Indian Writers, 1999: A-M. Sahitya Akademi. pp. 743–744. ISBN 978-81-260-0873-5.
  5. Desai, S. D. (18 July 2015). "Who is That Across the Fence?". The Indian Express. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  6. Sanjukta Dasgupta; Malashri Lal (13 November 2007). The Indian Family in Transition: Reading Literary and Cultural Texts. SAGE Publications. p. 181. ISBN 978-81-321-0163-5. Retrieved 26 March 2017.
  7. Sathian, Sanjena (16 May 2016). "When a Respected Author Becomes an Accidental Feminist". OZY. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  8. Nalini Natarajan; Emmanuel Sampath Nelson (1996). Handbook of Twentieth-century Literatures of India. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 127. ISBN 978-0-313-28778-7.
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