Noted writer and novelist Shawkat Ali has passed away at a hospital in Dhaka. He was 81.
He breathed his last at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) Hospital around 8:15am on Thursday, his son journalist Asif Shawkat Kallol said.
Earlier on January 4, Shawkat Ali was admitted to Labaid Hospital at Dhanmondi after his physical condition deteriorated due to a severe blood infection.
Born on February 12, 1936 at Raiganj in Dinajpur, he grew up in a politically and culturally conscious family.
On completion of his master degree in 1958, he joined a Dinajpur school as teacher and then Thakurgaon College in 1959.
His novels – including Jatra, Prodoshe Prakritojon, Dakkhinayaner Din and Uttarer Khep — occupy a major part of Bangla literature. Of them, Uttarer Khep was adapted into a film.
Shawkat Ali received Philips Literary Award in 1986 and 1989, Bangla Academy Literary Award in 1968, Lekhak Shibir Medal in 1978, Ajit Guha Literary Prize in 1982, and Ekushe Padak for his contributions to the growth and development of Bangla literature.
