Malti Joshi, a celebrated writer and recipient of the Padma Shri award, died at the age of 90 on Wednesday. Joshi had been battling cancer for some time and breathed her last at her son Sachchidanand Joshi’s residence in Delhi. Sachchidanand Joshi, a distinguished litterateur, serves as the member secretary of the Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts (IGNCA).
Malti Joshi was known for her prolific literary contributions, with over fifty collections of stories in Hindi and Marathi to her credit. Regarded as one of the most prominent Hindi story writers, Joshi’s storytelling style was renowned for its uniqueness and held a special position in the literary realm. Her works have been extensively studied in universities across India, reflecting the impact of her literary endeavors on both readers and scholars. Throughout her career, she authored more than 60 books and was honored with the prestigious Padma Shri award in 2018 for her significant contributions to literature.
Born on June 4, 1934, in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, Malti Joshi received her education in Madhya Pradesh and graduated from the Holkar College of Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar University, Indore. She pursued her passion for Hindi literature and earned a Master of Arts degree in the same field in 1956.
Several of Joshi’s stories were adapted for television by Doordarshan, and she made appearances in television shows such as ‘Saat Phere,’ produced by Jaya Bachchan, and ‘Kirdaar,’ produced by Gulzar. Her stories were translated into multiple languages, including Marathi, Urdu, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Punjabi, Malayalam, Kannada, English, Russian, and Japanese, expanding her reach and influence across diverse audiences.