Shiv Prasaad Singh

Shiv Prasaad Singh was an Indian writer, university professor and scholar of the Hindi language. He is well-known for writing novels, short stories and critiques in Hindi. He was formerly a professor of Hindi literature in Benares Hindu University. He received the Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award in 1990 for his novel Neela Chand.Due to his extensive portrayal of post-independence rural Northern India in various novels, such as Alag Alag Vaitarani, he faced criticism from elite Hindi circles who labeled him an “Aanchalik” (regional) writer. The intelligentsia often referred to this regional writing as a lesser form of literature, arguing that a focus merely on local village dialects, customs, and rural poverty (dehat) lacked the sophistication and universal appeal of urban stories. Despite this criticism, he is regarded as one of the most important writers of the Hindi “Aanchalik” genre, second only to Phanishwar Nath Renu.

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