Eminent Assamese poet Nilmani Phookan has been chosen for the prestigious Jnanpith Award, the literary organisation has announced.
His work, replete with symbolism, is inspired by French symbolism and is representative of the genre in Assamese poetry. His notable works include Surya Henu Nami Ahe Ei Nodiyedi, Gulapi Jamur Lagna, and Kobita.
Phookan was awarded the 1981 Sahitya Akademi Award in Assamese for his poetry collection, Kavita (Kobita). He was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 1990, and received the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship, the highest literary honor in India, given by Sahitya Akademi, India’s National Academy of Letters in 2002.
Instituted in 1961, the award by Bharatiya Jnanpith recognises Indian literatteurs who write in one of the 22 Indian languages listed in Schedule Eight of the Indian Constitution.