Three Writers Honored with ‘Madhupark Samman’

Madhupark monthly, a literary publication of the Gorkhapatra Sansthan awarded poet Krishna Bhakta Shrestha, fiction writer Pushkar Lohani and poet Prabha Bhattarai with ‘Madhupark Samman 2080’ on the occasion of its 56th foundation day. The honors were conferred upon the writers at an event organized in Baneshwar on Tuesday under the chairmanship of Jayadev Bhattarai, Editor-in-Chief of Madhupark. Senior poet Bairagi Kainla graced the ceremony as Chief Guest. The honors contain cash support of thirty-five thousand rupees each and a citation.

Speaking on the occasion, critic and writer Mahesh Paudyal threw light on the literary contribution of the honored writers. He credited poet Krishna Bhakta Shrestha for upholding Nepali modernism by making poetry polysemic, and resisting the state’s censorship and coercion at all cost. He congratulated writer Lohani for sticking to the same motif, psychosexual surgery of the human mind, throughout his writing career that has lasted for more than six decades. He commended poet Prabha Bhattarai for publishing touchstones for kids, maintaining a rare balance between artistry and inspirational message.

Speaking as the Chief Guest, poet Kainla credited poets Shrestha and Lohani for contributing to the evolution of ‘the third pole’ after the Second World War to resist the monopoly of the two power blocks. He commended them for undoing the traditional concept of a single hero, and for establishing the idea of a hero-less world. He also complimented poet Bhattarai for conserving the classical tradition of metrical poetry and working for the cause incessantly.

Addressing the gathering, Gorkhapatra Sansthan’s Executive Chairman Bishnu Subedi said his organization would increase the prize money from thirty-five thousand to fifty thousand rupees from next year, and make the money tax-free. Lal Bahadur Airee, Managing Director of the corporation said, Madhuparka would continue to weave literature and writers into a web of solidarity as it had always been doing. Chair of the session, Jayadev Bhattarai, appealed to the literary community to continue its support to the publication to make it even more productive and inclusive. Poet Lohani and Bhattarai thanked Madhupark for recognising their works and inspiring them to work more with added vigour.

The selection of the awardees was done by a committee coordinated by senior writer and singer Ganesh Rasik.