Harish Naik

Harish Naik was a prolific writer of Gujarati children’s literature and a storyteller. He was named posthumously for the Padma Shri in 2024 in the field of literature and education, from Gujarat ^[1].

A lifetime of stories

He was born on 28 October 1926 into a family of modest means in Surat and began writing after finishing school in 1943 ^[2]. He kept writing for children until the end of his life ^[2].

Naik wrote more than 2,000 stories in over 500 books, covering animals, adventure, war, mythology, science, biography, comedy, radio plays and lullabies ^[2]. Many first appeared in children’s magazines such as Zagmag, Bal Sandesh and Ramakdu ^[2]. He retold stories such as those of Hercules and the science fiction of Jules Verne for Gujarati readers, and his work was translated into Marathi, Hindi and Sindhi ^[2].

In 1980 he started his own monthly, Nayak. He also printed books in large type without joined letters for children and adults learning to read, selling them for a rupee each ^[2].

Storyteller

In 1979, the International Year of the Child, he told stories to more than five lakh children in some 500 schools in Ahmedabad ^[2]. He also volunteered as a storyteller in children’s cancer wards, orphanages and slums ^[2].

His honours included the Sahitya Akademi’s Bal Sahitya Puraskar (2017) and a Rashtrapati Sammaan (2007) ^[2]. He died on 24 October 2023 ^[2].