Eighty-one-year-old Indian-origin author Meira Chand was among the many three Singaporeans conferred the Cultural Medallion, the city-state’s most prestigious arts accolade, in recognition of their inventive excellence and contribution to enriching the nation’s arts and tradition scene.

Meira Chand, fellow novelist Suchen Christine Lim and Malay dance veteran Osman Abdul Hamid acquired the award from President Tharman Shanmugaratnam at a ceremony held on the Istana on Tuesday, The Straits Occasions newspaper reported.

The award comes with an SGD 80,000 (roughly Rs 49 lakh) grant for every recipient to assist their inventive pursuits.

A Singaporean of Swiss-Indian parentage, Meira Chand, together with Lim, is the primary English-language feminine author to be conferred the award since Ho Minfong in 1997.

Meira Chand is an award-winning novelist recognized for her depiction of multicultural societies. Her ‘The Painted Cage’ (1986) was longlisted for the distinguished Booker Prize, the report mentioned.

“Every of our three new Cultural Medallion recipients is being recognised for his or her explorations by way of life and for uplifting many others, not least the following technology of artists,” President Tharman mentioned in a press release.

From England to Japan, India to Singapore, Meira Chand’s life, in keeping with her web site, straddles the world, and her many novels mirror her journey to pin down the expertise of those completely different cultures upon her and her relationship with them.

In accordance with her web site, she was born in London to a Swiss mom and Indian father, grew up, and was educated within the UK.

In 1962, she went to Japan together with her Indian husband, the place she taught artwork at a world faculty. Leaving Japan for Mumbai in 1971, she lived in India for 5 years, the place she started writing.

Calling India a “life-changing expertise”, the novelist mentioned, “For the primary time in my life, I met a half of myself I had by no means recognized. There was merely no means I may perceive that have however by way of writing,” in keeping with her web site.

The Cultural Medallion, instituted in 1979 by late President after which Minister of Tradition Ong Teng Cheong, is the city-state’s “highest arts accolade, honouring people whose inventive excellence, contribution, and dedication have enriched and distinguished Singapore’s arts and tradition scene,” in keeping with the Nationwide Arts Council web site.

It celebrates inspiring native arts practitioners who show skilled maturity of their apply by way of a particular physique of labor, and who’ve made extraordinary contributions to Singapore’s inventive improvement, the web site mentioned.

The award has been conferred to 132 artists within the fields of movie, literary arts, performing arts, and visible arts, it mentioned.

Final 12 months, 56-year-old Tamilian Hindu Aravinth Kumarasamy was conferred the distinguished award. 

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