Digish Nanubhai Mehta (12 July 1934 ― 13 June 2001) was a

Gujarati language Gujarati (; gu, ગુજરાતી, Gujarātī, translit-std=ISO, label=Gujarati script, ) is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Indian state of Gujarat and spoken predominantly by the Gujarati people. Gujarati is descended from Old Gu ...

essayist, novelist and critic from

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

, India.

Biography

He was born on 12 July 1934 at Patan (now in Gujarat, India). He completed his primary and secondary education from

Sidhpur Siddhpur, also spelled Sidhpur, is a town, municipality and headquarter of Sidhpur taluka in Patan district, in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is a historical place located on the bank of the endorheic Saraswati River, which is probably a rem ...

. He

matriculated Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term "matriculation" is seldom used now. ...

in 1949. He completed BA in English and Psychology from Dharmendrasinhji College,

Rajkot Rajkot () is the fourth-largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat after Ahmedabad, Vadodara, and Surat, and is in the centre of the Saurashtra region of Gujarat. Rajkot is the 35th-largest metropolitan area in India, with a population of ...

in 1953. He completed MA from

Gujarat College Gujarat Arts & Science College, popularly and previously known as Gujarat College, is one of the oldest educational institution of India and second arts and science college of Gujarat, near Ellis Bridge, Ahmedabad. The institution was founded ...

and joined Ramanand Mahavidyalaya (now H. K. Arts College) in June 1955 as a professor of English. He went to

University of Leeds , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

, England in 1967 and completed MA in 1968. In 1970, he joined School of Languages,

Gujarat University The Gujarat University is a public state university located at Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. The university is an affiliating university at the under-graduate level and a teaching university at the postgraduate level. It is accredited B++ by N ...

as the Reader in English. In 1982, he completed PhD on T. S. Eliot. He retired on 31 October 1994. He died on 13 June 2001 at

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ; Gujarati: Amdavad ) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 (per t ...

. He married Smita in 1963, and he had two daughters.

Works

Mehta's essays first appeared in ''Sanskriti'' in 1960–62. In 1970, his first collection of fourteen essays ''Doorna E Soor'' was published. Two more essays were added in its second edition. His second essay collection ''Sheri'' (1995) includes 53 essays. ''Apno Ghadik Sang'' (1962) is his experimental novella with light humour. ''Shatrudhnani Paheli Safar'' (1999) is his experimental novel. His studies in Gujarati and English literature appear in his works of criticism like ''Pashchatya Navalkatha'' (Western Novels, 1975, with Harshad Desai), ''Paridhi'' (1976) and ''Ketlik Sahityik Sangnyao'' (2006). ''Shrimad Rajchandra'' (1980) is a short biography of

Shrimad Rajchandra Shrimad Rajchandra (11 November 1867 – 9 April 1901) was a Jain poet, mystic, philosopher, scholar and reformer. Born in Vavaniya, a village near Morbi, he claimed to have recollection of his past lives at the age of seven. He performed '' ...

. ''English! English!'' (1999) is his educational book on English language for Gujarati readers. He translated ''

The Chairs ''The Chairs'' (french: Les Chaises) is a one-act play by Eugène Ionesco, described as an absurdist "tragic farce". It was first performed in Paris in 1952. Setting A high tower surrounded by water. Characters *Old Man, aged 95 *Old Woman, age ...

'' by

Eugène Ionesco Eugène Ionesco (; born Eugen Ionescu, ; 26 November 1909 – 28 March 1994) was a Romanian-French playwright who wrote mostly in French, and was one of the foremost figures of the French avant-garde theatre in the 20th century. Ionesco inst ...

in Gujarati as ''Khurshio'' (2000) and ''

A Defence of Poetry "A Defence of Poetry" is an essay by the English poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, written in 1821 and first published posthumously in 1840 in ''Essays, Letters from Abroad, Translations and Fragments'' by Edward Moxon in London. It contains Shelley's ...

'' by

Percy Bysshe Shelley Percy Bysshe Shelley ( ; 4 August 17928 July 1822) was one of the major English Romantic poets. A radical in his poetry as well as in his political and social views, Shelley did not achieve fame during his lifetime, but recognition of his achie ...

as ''Kavitanu Bachavnamu'' (2000). His

one-act play A one-act play is a play that has only one act, as distinct from plays that occur over several acts. One-act plays may consist of one or more scenes. The 20-40 minute play has emerged as a popular subgenre of the one-act play, especially in writi ...

s are ''Jay Dhoranlalki!'' and ''Dado''. He co-edited ''Jayanti Dalalni Pratinidhi Vartao'' (Selected Stories of

Jayanti Dalal Jayanti Ghelabhai Dalal (18 November 1909 – 24 August 1970) was an Indian author, publisher, stage actor, director and politician. Born in family of theatre organiser and involved in politics during and after independence of India, he was infl ...

, 1991) with

Radheshyam Sharma Radheshyam Sharma (5 January 1936 – 9 September 2021) was a Gujarati language poet, novelist, short story writer, critic and compiler from the state of Gujarat, India. He is known in Gujarati literature for his experimental novels ''Fero'' ...

and Aniruddh Brahmabhatt.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mehta, Digish 1934 births 2001 deaths Indian male novelists Gujarati-language writers 20th-century Indian novelists Indian literary critics 20th-century Indian essayists 20th-century Indian translators Alumni of the University of Leeds People from Patan district Novelists from Gujarat 20th-century Indian male writers Gujarat University alumni Translators to Gujarati