Upendranath Ashk

Upendra Nath Ashk is acclaimed as one of the most controversial authors of the Hindi–Urdu tradition. He has written over a hundred books in almost all genres of literature. His magnum opus, Girti Deewaaren, written in seven volumes, is hailed as an epic of Indian middle- class life. Ashk has been widely translated. He was the first Hindi dramatist to receive the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1965. He also received the Soviet Land Nehru Award (1972) and Iqbal Award (1996).