Everything about Rohinton Mistry totally explained
Rohinton Mistry (born
3 July,
1952) is considered to be one of the foremost authors of Indian heritage writing in English. Residing in
Brampton,
Ontario,
Canada, Mistry is of
Indian origin, and belongs to the
Parsi Zoroastrian religious minority.
Biography
Born in
Mumbai,
India, Mistry immigrated to Canada in 1975, after obtaining an undergraduate degree in mathematics and economics from
Bombay University, in 1973. He worked in a bank for a while, before returning to studies, leading up to a degree in English and
philosophy. While attending the
University of Toronto he won two
Hart House literary prizes (the first to win two), for stories which were published in the
Hart House Review, and Canadian Fiction Magazine's annual Contributor's Prize for 1985. Two years later,
Penguin Books Canada published his collection of 11
short stories,
Tales from Firozsha Baag. It was later published in the
United States as
Swimming Lessons and Other Stories from Firozsha Baag.
When his first novel,
Such a Long Journey, was published in 1991, it won the
Governor General's Award, the
Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best Book, and the
W.H. Smith/
Books in Canada First Novel Award. in November 2001 and sold hundreds of thousands of additional copies throughout North America. It won the 1995 second annual
Giller Prize, and in 1996, the
Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Fiction.
In 2002, Mistry cancelled his
United States book tour for his novel
Family Matters (2002) because he and his wife were targeted by security agents at every
airport he visited, apparently because Mistry appeared to be
Muslim. Mistry reported that on his first flight of the tour, "we were greeted by a ticket agent who cheerfully told us we'd been selected
randomly for a special security check. Then it began to happen at every single stop, at every single airport. The random process took on a 100 percent certitude." His publisher issued a statement that said, "As a
person of color [Mistry] was stopped repeatedly and rudely at each airport along the way—to the point where the
humiliation ... had become unbearable."
His books, thus far, portray diverse facets of Indian socioeconomic life; as well as Parsi Zoroastrian life, customs, and religion. Many of his writings are markedly "
Indo-nostalgic", though he pointedly also exposes the seedy and grim side of life, not just the bright and cheery.
His literary papers are housed at the
Clara Thomas Archives
at
York University.
Bibliography
Awards and recognition
1983 First Prize, Hart House Literary Contest: "One Sunday" (short story) (Hart House Review)
1984 First Prize, Hart House Literary Contest: "Auspicious Occasion" (short story) (Hart House Review)
1985 Annual Contributors' Prize, Canadian Fiction Magazine
1991 Booker Prize for Fiction (shortlist): Such a Long Journey
1991 Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction: Such a Long Journey
1992 Commonwealth Writers Prize (Overall Winner, Best Book): Such a Long Journey
1992 Books in Canada First Novel Award: Such a Long Journey
1995 Giller Prize: A Fine Balance
1996 Booker Prize for Fiction (shortlist): A Fine Balance
1996 Commonwealth Writers Prize (Overall Winner, Best Book): A Fine Balance
1997 Irish Times International Fiction Prize (shortlist): A Fine Balance
2002 James Tait Black Memorial Prize (for fiction) (shortlist): Family Matters
2002 Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize (joint winner with Pascal Khoo Thwe): Family Matters
2002 Booker Prize for Fiction (shortlist): Family Matters
A Fine Balance was one of the selected books in the 2002 edition of Canada Reads, where it was championed by actor Megan Follows.Further Information
Get more info on 'Rohinton Mistry'.
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