Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
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{{Infobox Writer <!-- for more information see [[:Template:Infobox Writer/doc]] -->
|image = Replace this image female.svg <!-- only free-content images are allowed for depicting living people - see [[WP:NONFREE]] -->
|imagesize = 150px |
| name = Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
| caption =
| pseudonym =
| birthname = Chitralekha Banerjee
| birthdate = [[1956]]
| birthplace = [[Kolkata]], [[India]]
| deathdate =
| deathplace =
| occupation = Novelist
| nationality =[[India]], [[United States]]
| period =
| genre = poetry, short stories, novels; fantasy, young adult
| subject =
| movement =
| notableworks = ''Leaving Yuba City''; ''Arranged Marriage''; ''The Mistress of Spices''; ''Sister of My Heart''
| influences =
| influenced =
| awards = Ginsberg Poetry Prize; Pushcart Prize; LA Times Best Book; American Book Award; PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award
| website =
}}
'''Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni''' ([[1956]] - ) is an [[Indian-American]] author, poet, and professor of English at [[The University of Houston Creative Writing Program]].
==Background==
'''Chitralekha Banerjee''' Divakaruni was born in [[Kolkata]] (Calcutta), [[India]]. She received her B.A. from the [[List of University of Calcutta people|University of Calcutta ]] in 1976. That same year, she went to the [[United States]] to attend [[Wright State University]] where she received her Master's degree. She received her Ph.D. from the [[University of California, Berkeley]] in 1985 ([[Christopher Marlowe]] was the subject of her doctoral dissertation).
==Career==
She has taught at [[Foothill College]] in [[Los Altos]], [[California]]. She has also worked as a babysitter, a store clerk, a bread slicer, a dining hall attendant, and in laboratories. She now lives in [[Texas]], where she teaches at [[The University of Houston Creative Writing Program]].
Divakaruni is also a co-founder and former president of a helpline for [[South Asian]] women who are dealing with various forms of abuse from others. The organization, ''Maitri'', was founded in 1991.
==Works==
===Fiction===
Divakaruni's work has been published in over 50 magazines, including [[The Atlantic Monthly]], Harper's and [[The New Yorker]] and her writing has been included in over 30 anthologies.
While many of her novels are written for adults, she has also written the first two books in a juvenile fantasy series called [[The Brotherhood of the Conch]] which, like many of her adult novels, takes place in India (as well as other parts of Asia and the Middle East) and draws on the culture and folklore of that region.
Her next work will be a re-telling of the Indian [[Epic poetry|epic]], ''The [[Mahabharata]]'' told from the female characters' perspective. [http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050313/asp/calcutta/story_4482774.asp]
===Film and television===
Her novel, ''The [[Mistress of Spices]]'', was released as the film ''[[The Mistress of Spices (film)|The Mistress of Spices]]'' in 2005. It is directed by [[Paul Mayeda Berges]], with a script by Berges and his wife, [[Gurinder Chadha]]. The film stars [[Aishwarya Rai]].
In addition, her novel ''Sister of my Heart'' was made into a television series in Tamil and aired in India, as ''Anbulla Snegithiye (Loving Friend)''. [http://www.hinduonnet.com/2001/04/06/stories/1306069f.htm]
==Bibliography==
* Fiction
**''[[The Palace of Illusions: A Novel]]'' ([[2008 in literature|2008]])
** ''[[The Mirror of Fire and Dreaming]] Book Two of [[the Brotherhood of the Conch]]'' ([[2005 in literature|2005]])
** ''[[Queen of Dreams (novel)]]'' ([[2004 in literature|2004]])
** ''[[The Conch Bearer (novel)]] Book One of [[the Brotherhood of the Conch]]'' ([[2003 in literature|2003]])
** ''[[Neela: Victory Song (novel)]]'' ([[2002 in literature|2002]])
** ''[[The Vine of Desire (novel)]]'' (2002)
** ''[[The Unknown Errors of our Lives (stories)]]'' ([[2001 in literature|2001]])
** ''[[Sister of My Heart (novel)]]'' ([[1999 in literature|1999]])
** ''[[Leaving Yuba City (novel)]]'' ([[1997 in literature|1997]])
** ''[[Mistress of Spices (novel)|The Mistress of Spices]]'' (1997)
** ''[[Arranged Marriage: Stories]]'' ([[1995 in literature|1995]])
** ''[[Black Candle (novel)]]'' ([[1991 in literature|1991]])
** ''[[The Reason for Nasturiums (novel)]]'' ([[1990 in literature|1990]])
* Poetry
** ''Leaving Yuba City'' (1997)
** ''Black Candle'' (1991)
** ''The Reason for Nasturtiums'' (1990)
*Anthologies
** ''California Uncovered: Stories for the 21st Century'' (2004)
==Quote==
"Badly and tentatively I began writing early poems. You think I'm being modest but I'm not. I destroyed those sentimental and bad poems recently so no archivist could find them." - Chitra Divakaruni.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}
==Awards==
* 1997: The [[Allen Ginsberg]] Poetry Prize and the [[Pushcart Prize]] for ''Leaving Yuba City: New and Selected Poems''.
*1997: [[Los Angeles Times]] Best Book for ''Mistress of Spices''.
*1995: The [[American Book Award]] for ''Arranged Marriage: Stories''.
* [[PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award]] for ''Arranged Marriage: Stories''.
*Bay Area Book Reviewers Award for Fiction for ''Arranged Marriage: Stories''.
* [[PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award]]
* 2000 [[National Book Award]] judge.
==References==
*Abcarian, Richard and Marvin Klotz. "Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni." In ''Literature: The Human Experience'', 9th edition. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2006: 1544.
==See also==
{{Literature Portal}}
* [[List of Indian Americans]]
*[[Indian English literature]]
*[[List of Asian American writers]]
==External links==
===Biographies===
* [http://voices.cla.umn.edu/vg/Bios/entries/divakaruni_chitra_banerjee.html Voices from the Gaps biography]
* [http://www.sawnet.org/books/authors.php?Divakaruni+Chitra+Banerjee SAWNET biography]
* [http://www.english.emory.edu/Bahri/CBD.html Emory Biography]
* [http://www.saja.org/divakaruni.html SAJA Biography]
===Miscellaneous===
* [http://www.chitradivakaruni.com/ Official Website]
* [http://niralimagazine.com/2004/10/writing-from-two-worlds/ Writing from Two Worlds], Nirali Magazine, October 2004
* {{imdb name|id=2117209|name=Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni}}.
* [http://www.salon.com/archives/1997/mwt_diva.html Chitra Divakaruni at Salon]
* [http://www.randomhouse.com/resources/bookgroup/divakaruni_bgc.html Chitra Divakaruni at Random House]
* [http://www.randomhouse.com/boldtype/0997/divakaruni/poem.html 2 Poem Excerpts] from her book, "Leaving Yuba City."
{{DEFAULTSORT:Divakaruni, Chitra Banerjee}}
[[Category:Indian novelists]]
[[Category:Indian writers]]
[[Category:Indian women writers]]
[[Category:American novelists]]
[[Category:American short story writers]]
[[Category:People from Kolkata]]
[[Category:University of Calcutta alumni]]
[[Category:Asian American writers]]
[[Category:Indian American writers]]
[[Category:Wright State University alumni]]
[[Category:Bengali writers]]
[[Category:American Hindus]]
[[Category:1956 births]]
[[Category:Wright State University alumni]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:University of Houston faculty]]
[[es:Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni]]
[[fi:Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni]]