''The Sun's Seventh Horse'' ( hi, सूरज का सातवाँ घोड़ा; ''Suraj Ka Satvan Ghoda'') is a 1952 Hindi
meta fiction
Metafiction is a form of fiction which emphasises its own narrative structure in a way that continually reminds the audience that they are reading or viewing a fictional work. Metafiction is self-conscious about language, literary form, and story ...
novel by
Dharamvir Bharati
Dharamvir Bharati (25 December 1926 – 4 September 1997) was a renowned Hindi poet, author, playwright and a social thinker of India. He was the chief editor of the popular Hindi weekly magazine '' Dharmayug'', from 1960 till 1987.The Illustr ...
, one of the pioneers of modern
Hindi literature
Hindi literature ( hi, हिन्दी साहित्य, translit=hindī sāhitya) includes literature in the various Hindi language which have writing systems. Earliest forms of Hindi literature are attested in poetry of Apabhraṃ ...
.
The novel presents three related narratives about three women: Jamuna, Sati, and Lily. It is narrated by Manik Mulla, who is also a character in the novel, to his friends over seven afternoons, in the style of ''
Hitopadesha
''Hitopadesha'' (Sanskrit: हितोपदेशः, IAST: ''Hitopadeśa'', "Beneficial Advice") is an Indian text in the Sanskrit language consisting of fables with both animal and human characters. It incorporates maxims, worldly wisdom and ...
'' or ''
Panchatantra
The ''Panchatantra'' (IAST: Pañcatantra, ISO: Pañcatantra, sa, पञ्चतन्त्र, "Five Treatises") is an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in Sanskrit verse and prose, arranged within a frame story. ''. The novel looks at the disappointments in love faced by these women and how they cope with their lives. The self-reflexive story is also known for its subversive take on the "
Devdas
''Devdas'' ( bn, দেবদাস, transliterated as ''Debdās'') is a Bengali romance novel written by Sarat Chandra Chatterjee. The story pivots a tragic triangle linking Devdas, an archetypal lover in viraha (separation); Paro, his forbidden ...
" syndrome. The Sun's Seventh Horse was published after Bharati's debut novel
Gunahon Ka Devta (1949), which subsequently became a classic.
Sachchidananda Vatsyayan
Sachchidananda Hirananda Vatsyayan (7 March 1911 – 4 April 1987), popularly known by his pen name Agyeya (also transliterated Ajneya, meaning 'the unknowable'), was an Indian writer, poet, novelist, literary critic, journalist, translator a ...
's (''nom de plume'': Agyeya) English translation of the novel was published in 1999. Its 46th edition was published by
Bhartiya Jnanpith
Bharatiya Jnanpith a literary and research organization, based in New Delhi, India, was founded on February 18, 1944Encyclopaedia of Indian literature vol. 1, p. 298 1987, Sahitya Akademi, by Sahu Shanti Prasad Jain of the Sahu Jain family and h ...
in 2012. In 1992, the novel was made into an
eponymous film by director
Shyam Benegal
Shyam Benegal (born 14 December 1934) is an Indian film director, screenwriter and documentary filmmaker. Often regarded as the pioneer of parallel cinema, he is widely considered as one of the greatest filmmakers post 1970s. He has received ...
, starring
Rajit Kapur
Rajit Kapur is an Indian film and theatre actor and director. He is known for his portrayal of Mahatma Gandhi in the 1996 film, '' The Making of the Mahatma'' for which he won the National Film Award for Best Actor. Other notable roles are as ...
,
Raghuvir Yadav
Raghubir Yadav is an Indian actor, music composer, singer and set designer who works in Hindi films. He made his film debut with ''Massey Sahib'' (1985), in which he played the title role. He has won two International Awards as Best Actor for ...
and
Rajeshwari Sachdev.
The film received wide acclaim and won the 1992
National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi
The National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India. It is one of several a ...
.
References
External links
''The Sun's seventh horse'' National Book trust
Hindi-language novels
Indian novels adapted into films
1952 novels
Self-reflexive novels
Novels about Indian women
1952 Indian novels
{{India-lit-stub