Subhadra Sen Gupta (June 1952 – 3 May 2021)[1][2] was an Indian writer. She was the winner of Sahitya Akademi's 2015 Bal Sahitya Puraskar[3] and wrote over 30 books. Her book, Mystery of the House of Pigeons, was adapted into a television series for Doordarshan as Khoj Khazana Khojher.[4] Most of her books are in the genres of historical fiction and non-fiction, but she also wrote travelogues, comic strips and detective and ghost stories.[5][6]
Subhadra Sen Gupta | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | June 1952 Delhi, India |
| Died | 3 May 2021 (aged 68) |
| Language | English |
| Education | Delhi University |
| Period | 1980s–2021[1] |
| Genre | historical fiction, non-fiction, travel, mystery, horror |
| Notable works | Mystery of the House of Pigeons |
Life and career
Sen Gupta was born in Delhi. She held a master's degree in history. She began writing in college, working as a copywriter for advertising agencies.[6]
Some of her works include Goodbye, Pasha Begum! from The Puffin Book of Spooky Ghost Stories (a horror story where a girl holidaying in Delhi finds herself as a slave in the Mughal era), Bishnu - The Dhobi Singer (a dhobi boy who is taken under the tutelage of Tansen) and A Mauryan Adventure (the daughter of a soldier in Ashoka's army finds herself travelling the world). The Secret Diary of the World's Worst Cook (the child of two physicists who is bad at physics himself finds a diary written by a boy in a similar situation coming from a family of cooks)[7] is part of a book series, World's Worst, written in the diary format. This series also includes The Secret Diary of the World's Worst Cook.[3] A Flag, A Song And a Pinch of Salt features 19 freedom fighters of India and their inspiring stories.[8]
She also wrote a book for TERI, Caring for Nature: Bapu and the Missing Blue Pencil.[3] Her 2015 book, A Children's History of India, was about the history of India written for children over the age of 10 years.[4] In 2020, she released The Constitution of India for Children (sourced from books written by Ramachandra Guha, Bipan Chandra, Granville Austin and Derek O'Brien)[9] and Mahal: Power and Pageantry in the Mughal Harem (about the social life of a harem in the Mughal era). She is also famous for her books A Bagful of History, The Teenage Diary of Jodh Bai and The Teenage Diary of Jahanara
Sen Gupta died of COVID-19 on 3 May 2021, at the age of 68, amid the COVID-19 pandemic in India.[1][10]
Awards and accolades
Her book, Mystery of the House of Pigeons, was adapted into a six-part television series by Feisal Alkazi as Khoj Khazana Khojher on Doordarshan. Her works were also chosen as part of NCERT textbooks.[4] Three of her books, Twelve O'Clock Ghost Stories, The Teenage Diary of Jodh Bai and A Clown for Tenali Rama were included in the annual White Ravens catalogue at the Bologna Children's Book Fair.[5] In 2015, she was awarded the Bal Sahitya Puraskar by the Sahitya Akademi for her contribution to children's literature in the English language.[4]
Works
Stories
- Goodbye, Pasha Begum! (in The Book of Spooky Ghost Stories)
- Bishnu - The Dhobi Singer
- A Mauryan Adventured
Novels
- Danger in Darjeeling: Satyajit Ray's Feluda Mysteries (2010)
- A Flag, A Song And a Pinch of Salt
- Marching to Freedom
- The Secret Diary of the World's Worst Cook
- The Secret Diary of the World's Worst Friend
- Caring for Nature: Bapu and the Missing Blue Pencil
- A Children's History of India (2015)
- The Constitution of India for Children (2020)
- Mahal: Power and Pageantry in the Mughal Harem (2020)
References
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