Rohinton Mistry (born 1952) is an Indo-Canadian author of short stories, pamphlets, and novels, such as Such a Long Journey (1991), A Good Balance (1995), Family Matters (2002), The Ferosha Bagh Story (1987), Looking for Stevenson (1994 2006) and The Scream (2006). Elements of his work related to Parsi culture include the history of Iranian immigration, seeking asylum in India, the attitudes of the Parsis colonial elite and their discomfort with decolonizing India.
Wiki/Biography
Rohinton Mistry was born on Thursday, July 3, 1952 (age Age 71; as of 2023) in Mumbai (now Mumbai), India. His zodiac sign is Cancer. He graduated from St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai in 1974 with a BA in Mathematics and Economics. In 1975, he moved to Toronto, Canada, where he worked as a bank clerk. In 1982, he received a BA in English and Philosophy from the University of Toronto (Woodsworth College). In the literary magazine Rungh (1993), Mistry opened up about the Indian mentality towards higher education,
After completing college in Mumbai or elsewhere in India, one must study abroad. If possible, one must find a job after completing a master’s or doctoral degree. In the US or UK, find a job and settle in the country. This is the Indian definition of success. So that’s why I said coming to Canada was partly my decision. “
family
He is a Zoroastrian Parsi whose ancestors were exiled by the Islamic conquest of Iran.
Parents and siblings
His father, Behram Mistry, was in the advertising industry and his mother, Freny Mistry, was a housewife. His grandfather owned a bookstore. His brother Cyrus Mistry is an Indian playwright and award-winning novelist. His novel “The Body Bearer Chronicles” won the DSC South Asian Literary Award in 2014.
Rossington Mistry’s brother Cyrus Mistry
wife and children
Rossington Mistry married Freni Elavia. In an interview, he said of his wife:
I met my wife when I was 19 or 20, at a music school and she was taking voice and piano lessons and I was taking music theory and composition classes. “
Signature/Autograph
Profession
While studying at the University of Toronto, Rohinton Mistry was twice awarded the Hart House Literary Award for stories published in the Hart House Review, and in 1985 he won the Canadian Fiction Magazine’s annual Contributor Award. In 1987, his collection of eleven short stories, Firozsha’s Stories, was published as Baag by Penguin Canada and later in the United States as Firozsha Baag’s Swimming Lessons and Other Stories. It describes the daily life of Parsis people in Mumbai. The story in the book tells the story of the trials and tribulations of the Parsis living in Mumbai. His second novel, Such a Long Journey, was published in 1991 and won the Governor General’s Award, the Commonwealth Writers’ Best Book Award and the WH Smith/Canada Books First Novel Award.
novel
- The Long Road (1991)
short stories and chapbooks
- The Story of Firozsha Baag (1987), also published as Firozsha Baag’s Swimming Lessons and Other Stories (1989)
- Looking for Stevenson(1994)
dispute
Book against Bal Thackeray withdrawn from BA syllabus (English)
Contents of his book “Such a Long Journey” (1991) caused controversy in Mumbai University in 2010 because of its content targeting Bal Thackeray (Shiv Sena leader) and Maharashtrians. The book appeared as an elective text in the second-year BA (English) syllabus from 2007 to 2008 and was later withdrawn from the syllabus by Mumbai University Vice-Chancellor Dr. Rajan Welukar using emergency powers. Maharashtra Universities Act, 1994.
Awards, Honors, Achievements
- In 1983, Rohinton Mistry won the University of Toronto’s Hart House Literary Competition with the short story “One Sunday” and in 1984 with “Auspicious Occasion” ) won the championship.
- In 1985, Rohinton Mistry won the Canadian Fiction Magazine Contributor of the Year Award.
- In 1991, Rossington Mistry’s book Such a Long Journey (1991) was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize.
- In 1991, Rohinton Mistry won the Governor General’s Award for his book So Long a Journey (1991). In the same year, he won the Commonwealth Writers Award and the Trillium Award for his book Such a Long Journey.
- In 1995, Rohinton Mistry won the Giller Prize for Fiction and the Los Angeles Times Book Award for Fiction for A Fine Balance (1995).
- In 1996, he won the Commonwealth Writers’ Award for his book “A Fine Balance”.
- In 1996, Rossington Mistry’s book A Fine Balance was shortlisted for the Booker Prize.
- In 2002, Rohinton Mistry’s book Family Matters was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize. That same year, the book was shortlisted for the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 2004, the book was shortlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award.
- In 2012, Rashington Mistry won the Neustadt International Literature Prize.
Facts/Trivia
- His second book, Such a Long Journey (1991), has been translated into several languages, such as German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish and Japanese.
- In an interview with Asia Society Nermeen Shaikh talked about his favorite authors and said:
In college, I remember reading Hard Times, Great Expectations, David Copperfield, and I thought that was it, really. I have not done any special research, nor am I particularly interested in these authors. In fact, if I were to choose my favorites, favorites, they would probably include some American writers like Cheever, Saul Bellow, Bernard Malamud, and Updike. Of course, I do like 19th-century writers like Chekhov and Turgenev, but I don’t have any particular affection for that period. But I’m no expert on the subject, so if critics think my work is Dickensian or Tolstoyan, I’ll thank them and say I’m flattered. ”
- In 2002, Rohinton Mistry had to cancel a 2002 US tour of his novel Family Matters after he and his wife were targeted by security agents at every airport because they thought he was Muslim. Book signing.
- In his novel “A Fine Balance” he said:
Money can buy the necessary police orders. Justice is sold to the highest bidder. “
- His second book, So Long a Journey (1991), was adapted into the 1998 film of the same name, So Long a Journey.
- Rossington Mistry also experimented with language mixing in his works, especially in the short stories he wrote.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education