Susham Bedi
Encyclopedia
Susham Bedi is a leading South Asian (India
n) author
of novel
s, short stories
and poetry
, currently living in the United States
. She is a professor of Hindi
language and literature at the department of Middle Eastern and Asian Languages and Cultures (MEALAC) at Columbia University
, New York
. She writes predominantly about the experiences of Indians in the South Asian diaspora, focusing on psychological and 'interior' cultural conflicts. Unlike other prominent Indian American
novelists she writes mainly in Hindi
rather than in English. She has been widely translated into English, French, Dutch and other languages by artists, academics, and students.
She was an actress in India in the 1960s and early 1970s. More recently in the United States she has appeared on such shows as "True Crime: New York City
", "Third Watch
", and "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit
", and in movies such as "The Guru" (2002) and "ABCD
" (1999). She is the mother of the actress Purva Bedi
.
In 2007 she was awarded 100,000 Rupees by Uttar Pradesh Hindi Sansthan for her contributions to Hindi language and literature.
In January, 2006 she was honored by Sahitya Academy
in Delhi
for her contributions to Hindi literature.
She attended Delhi University and Punjab University in India and taught Hindi literature. Her Ph.D. dissertation was published in 1984 as Innovation and Experimentation in Contemporary Hindi Drama by Parag publications in India.
From 1974 to 1979 she wrote for The Times of India
as one of their correspondents from Brussels, Belgium. In 1979 she came to the United States with her husband.
She has also been involved in Hindi language pedagogical research and has developed original reading and listening comprehension materials in Hindi. Many of these materials are available on the internet. Her "Using Authentic Materials in the Language Classroom: A Case in Hindi" was included in the anthology Teaching and Acquisition of South Asian Languages (University of Pennsylvania Press).
From 1990 to 1991, she contributed to a BBC weekly program, Letters from Abroad, in which she discussed day to day issues about life in New York.
and published by Heinemann International under the title The Fire Sacrifice in 1993.
Her novels and short stories often feature female protagonists who are in the process of negotiating new identities which are neither fully old nor new, often finding identity and strength in the impurities in their lives. Bedi's narrative focus tends to be on the negotiative and transformative process itself, the pain and tragedy of cultural loss, but also the sense of hope and opportunity in forging new and stronger identities if one is willing to endure the transformative process. Her works are thus located squarely in the South Asian diaspora and immigrant experience.
In 2007 her second short story collection, entitled Sarak ki Laya (Rhythm of the Road), was published by National Publishing House.
Her 8th novel, entitled Maine Nata Tora (I Broke the Ties), was published by Bhartiya Gyanpith, in December 2009.
", "Third Watch
", and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
", and in movies such as "The Guru" (2002) and "ABCD
" (1999).
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n) author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
of novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
s, short stories
Short Stories
Short Stories may refer to:*A plural for Short story*Short Stories , an American pulp magazine published from 1890-1959*Short Stories, a 1954 collection by O. E...
and poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, currently living in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. She is a professor of Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
language and literature at the department of Middle Eastern and Asian Languages and Cultures (MEALAC) at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. She writes predominantly about the experiences of Indians in the South Asian diaspora, focusing on psychological and 'interior' cultural conflicts. Unlike other prominent Indian American
Indian American
Indian Americans are Americans whose ancestral roots lie in India. The U.S. Census Bureau popularized the term Asian Indian to avoid confusion with Indigenous peoples of the Americas who are commonly referred to as American Indians.-The term: Indian:...
novelists she writes mainly in Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
rather than in English. She has been widely translated into English, French, Dutch and other languages by artists, academics, and students.
She was an actress in India in the 1960s and early 1970s. More recently in the United States she has appeared on such shows as "True Crime: New York City
True Crime: New York City
True Crime: New York City is an urban sandbox-style action-adventure videogame published by Activision and developed by Luxoflux for the Xbox, PlayStation 2, and GameCube consoles and Windows based computers. It is the second game of the True Crime series, released after True Crime: Streets of LA...
", "Third Watch
Third Watch
Third Watch is an American television drama series which first aired on NBC from 1999 to 2005 for a total of 132 episodes, broadcast in 6 seasons of 22 episodes each....
", and "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it is also primarily produced...
", and in movies such as "The Guru" (2002) and "ABCD
ABCD (film)
ABCD is a 2005 Tamil language film released in India. It was directed by Sharavana Subbaiya.The film starred Shaam, Sneha, Aparna and Nandana Kumar along with Vadivelu, who provided the comic relief.-Plot:...
" (1999). She is the mother of the actress Purva Bedi
Purva Bedi
Purva Bedi is an Indian American actress. Although she was born in Chandigarh, she was brought up in Belgium and the United States....
.
In 2007 she was awarded 100,000 Rupees by Uttar Pradesh Hindi Sansthan for her contributions to Hindi language and literature.
In January, 2006 she was honored by Sahitya Academy
Sahitya Akademi
The Sahitya Akademi ', India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India...
in Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
for her contributions to Hindi literature.
Early career
Susham Bedi began her writing career in high school and college, entering local competitions and writing articles and stories for magazines. She also worked as an actress and commentator on Indian television in the late-1960s and 1970s.She attended Delhi University and Punjab University in India and taught Hindi literature. Her Ph.D. dissertation was published in 1984 as Innovation and Experimentation in Contemporary Hindi Drama by Parag publications in India.
From 1974 to 1979 she wrote for The Times of India
The Times of India
The Times of India is an Indian English-language daily newspaper. TOI has the largest circulation among all English-language newspaper in the world, across all formats . It is owned and managed by Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd...
as one of their correspondents from Brussels, Belgium. In 1979 she came to the United States with her husband.
Academic career
Susham Bedi has been involved in exploring questions of identity, authenticity, and transformation, in her cultural criticism and academic work, and these themes are reflected as well in her fiction writing. She is the author of eight major Hindi language novels, as well as collections of Hindi short stories and poetry. These have been widely translated and have been the subject of academic dissertations and debates on the South Asian diaspora experience.She has also been involved in Hindi language pedagogical research and has developed original reading and listening comprehension materials in Hindi. Many of these materials are available on the internet. Her "Using Authentic Materials in the Language Classroom: A Case in Hindi" was included in the anthology Teaching and Acquisition of South Asian Languages (University of Pennsylvania Press).
From 1990 to 1991, she contributed to a BBC weekly program, Letters from Abroad, in which she discussed day to day issues about life in New York.
Fiction writing
Her most well-known novel is Havan (1989), which was translated into English by David RubinDavid Rubin
David C. Rubin is Professor of Psychology at Duke University. He is known for his work on the reminiscence bump as well as other topics related to autobiographical memory.-Weblinks:* http://www.dibs.duke.edu/research/profiles/94-david-c-rubin...
and published by Heinemann International under the title The Fire Sacrifice in 1993.
Recent Writing
In mid-2006, the National Publishing House, Delhi, published her Portrait of Mira in English (translated by David Rubin) along with the second edition of The Fire Sacrifice.In 2007 her second short story collection, entitled Sarak ki Laya (Rhythm of the Road), was published by National Publishing House.
Her 8th novel, entitled Maine Nata Tora (I Broke the Ties), was published by Bhartiya Gyanpith, in December 2009.
Novels and short stories
- Portrait of Mira, National Publishing House, Delhi (2006)
- Morche (Battlefronts), (novel) Delhi, Vani Prakashan, 2006.
- Shabdon Ki Khirkiyan (Words as Windows), (Poetry collection) Delhi, National Publishing House, 2006.
- Nava Bhum Ki Ras-katha (Epic of the New Land), Delhi: National Publishing House, 2002.
- Gatha Amerbel Ki (Song of the Amerbel), Delhi: National Publishing House, 1999.
- Itar, (The Other White Meat), Delhi: National Publishing House, 1998.
- Chiriya Aur Cheel (The Sparrow and the Kite: Short Story Collection), Delhi: Parag, 1995.
- Katra Dar Katra (Drop by Drop), Chandigarh: Abhishek, 1994.
- Lautna, (Returning), Delhi: Parag, 1992.
- Havan (The Fire Sacrifice), Delhi: Parag, 1989.
Cultural and critical works
- Kahan Hai Mera Gher (What is Home to me?). Vaagarth 113, Calcutta, Dec. 2004
- Diaspora me Hindi sahitya (Hindi Literature in the Diaspora: State and Direction). Bhasha 42,5, Delhi, Mar-April 2003, pp 105–112.
- "Quest for Identity: Grappling for the Literary Self in the Diaspora" Hindi: Language, Discourse and Writing. Volume 1 Issue 2. July-September 2000.
- Hindi Natya Prayog Ke Sandarbh Men (Innovation and Experimentation in Hindi Drama), Delhi: Parag, 1984.
Pedagogy
- "Bhasha Shikshan: Anubhav, Soch aur Chunotiyan ( Teaching Language: Experience, Thoughts and Challenges)". ANYATHA 1, Austin, USA, June 2004
- "Two Sides of a Coin: Heads and/or Tails" Hindi: Language, Discourse and Writing. Volume 2 Issue 4. January-March 2002.
- "Using Authentic Materials in the Language Classroom: A Case at Hand." Published in the anthology The Learning and Acquisition of South Asian Languages, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1995.
- "Culturally Authentic Situation Cards for the Teaching and Testing of South Asian Languages: Hindi." Published by Consortium for Language Teaching and Learning, New Haven, 1992.
- "Sunna-Samajhna: Listening Comprehension in Hindi (2 volumes and 2 videotapes: Volume I: Novice and Intermediate, Volume II: Advanced)." Published by ACTFL, Yonkers, NY, 1992.
- "Authentic Materials for Developing Reading Comprehension in Hindi (2 volumes: Volume I: Novice and Intermediate, Volume II: Advanced)." Published by ACTFL, Yonkers, NY, 1991.
Acting career
Susham Bedi has appeared on "True Crime: New York CityTrue Crime: New York City
True Crime: New York City is an urban sandbox-style action-adventure videogame published by Activision and developed by Luxoflux for the Xbox, PlayStation 2, and GameCube consoles and Windows based computers. It is the second game of the True Crime series, released after True Crime: Streets of LA...
", "Third Watch
Third Watch
Third Watch is an American television drama series which first aired on NBC from 1999 to 2005 for a total of 132 episodes, broadcast in 6 seasons of 22 episodes each....
", and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it is also primarily produced...
", and in movies such as "The Guru" (2002) and "ABCD
ABCD (film)
ABCD is a 2005 Tamil language film released in India. It was directed by Sharavana Subbaiya.The film starred Shaam, Sneha, Aparna and Nandana Kumar along with Vadivelu, who provided the comic relief.-Plot:...
" (1999).
Other
- Her high school certificate and passport list her birthday as 26 July 1945, though she celebrates 1 July as her real birthday.
- The actress Purva BediPurva BediPurva Bedi is an Indian American actress. Although she was born in Chandigarh, she was brought up in Belgium and the United States....
is her daughter.
External links
- Susham Bedi faculty page at Columbia University, with links to online writings and translations
- SAWNET entry for Susham Bedi - South Asian Women's NETwork.