Eminent writer Sunil Gangopadhyay dies of heart attack at 78

Noted litterateur and Sahitya Akademi president Sunil Ganguly died of cardiac arrest at his south Kolkata residence on Tuesday, family sources said. He was 78.

The author died at around 1.25 am on Tuesday leaving behind his wife and a son who lives in the US. According to sources, his last rites will be performed on Wednesday after his son Souvik arrives in Kolkata from Boston.

Born in 1934 in Bangladesh's Faridpur district, Ganguly was the founder editor of Krittibas; a seminal poetry magazine started in 1953 that became a platform for a new generation of poets.

Later, Ganguly started writing for various publications of the Ananda Bazar group; a leading publishing house based in Kolkata. During his literary career he authored more than 200 books that include his historical fiction Sei Somoy (Those days).

Sei Somoy received the Indian Sahitya Akademi award in 1985. The book was a best seller for more than two decade after its first publication.

Ganguly, who often used pen-names like Nil Lohit, Sanatan Pathak, and Nil Upadhyay, had claimed poetry as his 'first love'. The Nikhilesh and Neera series of poems, both his literary creations, are extremely popular among contemporary Bengali intelligentsia. The writer also wrote in many other genres including travelogues, children's fiction, short stories, features, and essays.

The author also won the Bankim Puraskar in 1982 and the Ananda Puraskar twice in 1972 and 1989.