Lakshmi Raj Sharma |
|
| Born | 1954 Mirzapur, UP, India |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Academician, Novelist |
| Language | English, Hindi |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Ethnicity | Asian |
| Education | MA, DPhil |
| Alma mater | University of Allahabad |
| Genres | Literary Fiction, Short Stories, and Literary Theory |
| Notable work(s) | The Tailor's Needle |
|
www.lakshmirajsharma.com |
|
Lakshmi Raj Sharma (Hindi: लक्ष्मी राज शर्मा) (born in 1954) is an Indian author, novelist, and academician. He teaches English literature and literary theory. He is currently a Professor at the Department of English and Modern European Languages at the University of Allahabad, Allahabad.[1] Recently his novel The Tailor’s Needle was published. A few other books are also to his credit. He is also an active blogger.[2]
Lakshmi Raj Sharma, was born in 1954 in a land-owning family, well known in the eastern districts of Uttar Pradesh. His grandfather Rai Bahadur Lakshmi Narain Sharma, a barrister, and his father Indra Raj Sharma were among notable people in Mirzapur. His eldest brother Ajay Raj Sharma was the Police Commissioner of Delhi and later the Director General of the Border Security Force.[3] He is married to Bandana Sharma, a fellow professor in his university department; they have a son, Dhruv, who is an etymologist.
Lakshmi Raj Sharma went to the Boys' High School & College, Allahabad for his early and secondary education. He entered the University of Allahabad in 1973, graduated in 1975 and then completed his masters in 1977. He received the Doctor of Philosophy award from the same university in 1986. He was selected for the Indian Civil Services, but opted for an academic career.[1] The Tailor's Needle (2009; ISBN: 0956037046, Picnic Publishing Limited, UK) is his first novel, published in 2009. It is set in India in the first half of the twentieth century. The novelist himself says: It is a Raj novel covering the era 1917–1940. The characters are Indians and Brits, including a fictional British Viceroy of India.[4] A reviewer comments:
Gis Hoyle, a novelist and reviewer, observes that in the novel "The whole is held together by a gently mocking and yet ultimately compassionate narrative voice, which gives the reader a brief and enchanting glimpse into a world now gone, with all its faults – and all that might be loved in it, too."[6] Ann Northfield in Historical Novels Review writes: This is an unusual novel that carries the flavour of its time and setting. Anyone who enjoys books about India would find this worth a read.[7]
The novelist believes that his "greatest wealth is the support he has received from his students who have always overflowed into and out of his classrooms. A number of them are in high positions, some very distinguished journalists, who would go out of their way to continue their support to this author."
Professor Lakshmi Raj Sharma is currently working on his second novel, Emancipation, and has recently completed a further collection, The English World and Other Stories.[8] His works include TS Eliot-Middleton Murry Debate, The Twain Shall Meet, and a short story collection Marriages are Made in India (2001; ISBN: 8175957786, Writers Workshop, Calcutta). He has edited Shakespeare's Problem Plays.[9]