Pundalik Naik

Pundalik Narayan Naik (born 21 April 1952) is an Indian Konkani poet, short-story writer, novelist, playwright, and screenwriter. He has 40 books and two films to his credit.

Early life and education Naik was born on 21 April 1952,

He completed his secondary school education up to the S.S.C. level at the Government High School in Savoi-Verem. Following this, he pursued higher education up to Inter Arts at the Dhempe College of Arts and Science in Panaji.

Notable works

In all, Naik has 32 plays, and collections of short stories, novels, novellas, translations and books of children's rhyme to his credit. There is also an essay (translated into English by Vidya Pai) explaining how Naik's Acchev happened. This essay (in Konkani) was originally published in the special issue of the Konkani literary magazine Jaag released to celebrate 150 years of the Konkani novel in early 2012.

Manohar Shetty, in a review in the Deccan Herald, writes: "Pundalik Naik's novel is set in this grim backdrop, chronicling in detail the decay of a self-sufficient agricultural community with the impassive invasion of the mining industry. Naik's novel, the first to be translated from Konkani, created something of a sensation when it appeared in 1977. No other writer in Goa had portrayed in such graphic and brutal detail the ruinous fallouts on small agricultural holdings by the bulldozers of big industry. Pandhari, the protagonist of the novel, is the first to fall into the tempting shaft. Just before the auspicious day of sowing, Babuso, a wily and unscrupulous go-between, approaches him for his services as a load-bearer and to hire his bullock-cart to carry ore from the mines. Pandhari succumbs to the allure of quick money and in an instant becomes a bonded labourer and the bullocks, which once ploughed the life-sustaining fields, become a transport vehicle, the cart laden with the metallic spoils of the pillaged land."

Awards He was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award in Konkani for his work, Chowrang, in 1984, by Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters. He was awarded the Gomant Sharda Puraskar for Lifetime Achievement in 2010.

He has also been bestowed the AIR's Playwright Award (1986, 1987), the Paters Award of the Australian Academy of Broadcasting and Science (1988), the Government of Goa award for children's drama (1975), and the Konkani Bhasha Mandal Prize. In 2013, the Sangeet Natak Akademi award came on account of his contribution to Indian theatre as a playwright.

Other awards include: 1975–1983: Literary awards from the Konkani Bhasha Mandal for various books. State Awards: Received State Awards from the Kala Academy for his novel Acchev and his children's musical play Ransundari. 1980: Won the All-India Akashvani Award for the presentation of his one-act play Marnakato. 1984: Awarded the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award by the Indian Sahitya Akademi for his one-act play collection Chaurang. 1985: Selected by the Indian Jaycees as one of the ten outstanding young individuals of the nation. 1986: Won the All-India Akashvani Award for his play Shree Vichitrachi Jatra. 1987: Secured the first prize in the All-India Radio Playwriting Competition organized by Akashvani for his radio play Mhasagarantle Tarum. 1988: Received the international Paters Australian Award from the Australian Academy of * Broadcasts for his play Shree Vichitrachi Jatra. Other honours: Conferred with the Swargest Gundu Sitaram Amonkar Award.

Personal life He is married to Hema Naik, also a Konkani writer.