TheHH: Started Biography

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{{Short description|Indian folklorist, playwright, and poet (born 1938)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2026}}
{{Use Indian English|date=February 2026}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Gautam Chand Sharma
| honorific_suffix = Vyathit
| image = Gautam Vyathit.jpg
| caption =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1938|8|15|df=yes}}
| birth_place = Nerti
| death_date =
| death_place =
| education = [[Guru Nanak Dev University]] [[Panjab University]]
| occupation = Professor, folklorist, playwright, poet, linguist
| organization = Kangra Lok Sahitya Parishad
| known_for = Preservation of Kangri folk arts and knowledge Revival of Jhamakra dance
| notable_works = Kangri Lok Geet (1973) Dholru: Himachal ki lok gathae (1973) Kāṅgaṛā ke lokagīta, sāhityika viśleshaṇa evaṃ mūlyāṅkana (1984) Bharatiya sahitya ke nirmata: Baba Kanshi Ram (2000) Folklore of Himachal Pradesh (2006)
| children = 1
| awards = [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] (2007)
}}

'''Gautam Sharma "Vyathit"''' (born on 15 August 1938; born Gautam Chand Sharma), is a folklorist, playwright, and poet from [[Himachal Pradesh]], India. He is also known as '''Gautam Chand Sharma "Vyathit"''' or just '''Gautam Vyathit.''' He is noted for his literary works in [[Kangri language|Kangri]] and [[Hindi]], as well as for his various efforts to preserve and nurture the endangered folk arts of Himachal Pradesh, especially those of the [[Kangra district|Kangra]] region. Vyathit was the joint recipient of the 2007 [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] (Bhasha Samman) for his contributions to Himachali languages and literature. 'Vyathit', Gautam Sharma's pen-name in [[Hindi]], means 'pained', or 'distressed'.

== Personal life ==
Vyathit was born to Faquir Chand and Sheela Devi on 15 August 1938, at village Nerti in the [[Kangra district]] of erstwhile [[Punjab Province (British India)|Punjab Province]], [[Presidencies and provinces of British India|British India]]. Nerti is now located in Kangra district, [[Himachal Pradesh]], [[India]]. Vyathit did his primary schooling from Nerti, matriculation from the nearby village of [[Rait, Himachal Pradesh|Rait]] (1957), and B.A. (1965), B.Ed., and M.A. in Hindi (1968) from [[Punjab University (Chandigarh)|Panjab University]]. He ultimately earned a PhD in 1974, from the [[Guru Nanak Dev University]] in [[Punjab, India|Punjab]]. His doctoral thesis was titled ''Literary evaluation and critical analysis of Kangri folk songs''. He began his teaching career as a primary school teacher and proceeded to teach Hindi at Government College, [[Dharamshala]] for many years. Vyathit continues to live in Nerti.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Joshi |first=Sriniwas |date=12 April 2015 |title=Dr Vyathit is Dr Modest |url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/archive/features/dr-vyathit-is-dr-modest-66498 |access-date=4 January 2023 |website=Tribuneindia News Service |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=Ram |first=Atma |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ht455xqIGBsC&dq=gautam+vyathit&pg=PA82 |title=Morality in Tess and Other Essays: In Honour of Mulk Raj Anand |date=1995 |publisher=Mittal Publications |isbn=978-81-7099-610-1 |pages=81–83 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":5" />

Vyathit's son Durgesh Nandan, a poet and a writer, has been an active collaborator for several decades in his father's endeavours to preserve and articulate the endangered [[Kangri language|Kangri]] folk arts and disappearing ways of life.<ref name=":6">{{Cite news |last=Pandey |first=Siddharth |date=12 January 2025 |title=Heart of the village - a painting, a temple, and a father-son duo |url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/features/heart-of-the-village/ |work=The Tribune}}</ref>

== Works ==

=== Kangra Lok Sahitya Parishad ===
Vyathit has been the founder-director of the NGO 'Kangra Lok Sahitya Parishad' (translated as ''Kangra folk literature council''), established at Nerti in 1973.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":4" /> This NGO works for documenting and promoting the endangered folk arts of Himachal Pradesh. Its activities have included surveying and documenting these arts,<ref>{{Cite web |title=पारंपरिक विवाह व रीति-रिवाज के गीत सहेजेगी कांगड़ा लोक साहित्‍य परिषद Kangra News |url=https://www.jagran.com/himachal-pradesh/kangra-kangra-lok-sahitya-parishad-started-the-work-of-saving-folk-songs-of-marriage-customs-21550993.html |access-date=4 January 2023 |website=Dainik Jagran |language=hi}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=7 December 2016 |title=पारंपरिक लोक वाद्य एवं वादक विलुप्तता की कगार पर |url=https://www.khaskhabar.com/picture-news/news-traditional-folk-instruments-and-musicians-alist-extinction-1-135591-KKN.html |access-date=4 January 2023 |website=khas khabar |language=hi}}</ref> and organising cultural events including poetry recitals,<ref>{{Cite web |title=त्रिगर्त उत्सव {{!}} जिला काँगड़ा, हिमाचल प्रदेश सरकार {{!}} भारत |url=https://hpkangra.nic.in/hi/%e0%a4%a4%e0%a5%8d%e0%a4%b0%e0%a4%bf%e0%a4%97%e0%a4%b0%e0%a5%8d%e0%a4%a4-%e0%a4%89%e0%a4%a4%e0%a5%8d%e0%a4%b8%e0%a4%b5/ |access-date=4 January 2023 |language=hi-IN}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=कांगड़ा की संस्कृति से रूबरू होंगे देश-विदेश के निवेशक |url=https://www.amarujala.com/shimla/investor-meet-in-dharamshala-and-trigrat-festival-in-kangra-decision-by-dc-rakesh-prajapati |access-date=4 January 2023 |website=Amar Ujala |language=hi}}</ref> folk theatre,<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Folk Theatre of Kangra |url=http://www.123himachal.com/kangra/links/folk.htm |access-date=4 January 2023 |website=www.123himachal.com}}</ref> folk dances,<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=ChandraKanta |title=Jhamakada Folk Dance Of Kangra झमाकड़ा - काँगड़ा का लोक नृत्य |url=https://gajagamini.in/jhamakada-folk-dance-of-kangra/ |access-date=4 January 2023 |website=गजगामिनी |language=en-GB}}</ref> festivals,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jeratha |first=Aśoka |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ToONShWeEB0C&dq=Kangra+Lok+Sahitya+Parishad&pg=PA47 |title=Dogra Legends of Art & Culture |date=1998 |publisher=Indus Publishing |isbn=978-81-7387-082-8 |pages=47 |language=en}}</ref> and publications.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Phull |first=Sushil Kumar |date=1978 |title=Hindi Short Story in Himachal |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23333170 |journal=Indian Literature |volume=21 |issue=1 |pages=33–40 |jstor=23333170 |issn=0019-5804}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Rahi |first=Javaid |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W9pwEAAAQBAJ&dq=Kangra+Lok+Sahitya+Parishad&pg=PA821 |title=The Gujjars -Vol 04 (Gujjars History & Culture) by Dr. Javaid Rahi |publisher=Jammu and Kashmir Acacademy of Art, Culture , Languages , Jammu |language=en}}</ref> Vyathit has also developed an open-air theatre in Nerti, where the Parishad often hosts its activities.<ref name=":0" />

=== Works on Kangri folk arts ===
Vyathit's documentation and analyses of Kangra's folklore have been considered significant by scholars of disciplines including literature, anthropology, and folklore studies. These include [[Kirin Narayan]],<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Narayan |first=Kirin |date=1995 |title=The Practice of Oral Literary Criticism: Women's Songs in Kangra, India |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/541878 |journal=The Journal of American Folklore |volume=108 |issue=429 |pages=243–264 |doi=10.2307/541878 |jstor=541878 |issn=0021-8715|hdl=1885/100198 |hdl-access=free |url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Narayan |first1=Kirin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NGah0Si-4s4C&dq=gautam+vyathit&pg=PA232 |title=Mondays on the Dark Night of the Moon: Himalayan Foothill Folktales |last2=Sood |first2=Urmila Devi |date=1997 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-510348-9 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Narayan |first=Kirin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7Bs_DQAAQBAJ&dq=gautam+vyathit&pg=PA51 |title=Everyday Creativity: Singing Goddesses in the Himalayan Foothills |date=22 November 2016 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=978-0-226-40756-2 |language=en}}</ref> and [[Alan Dundes]],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dundes |first=Alan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NZlZAAAAMAAJ&q=gautam+vyathit |title=The Walled-up Wife: A Casebook |date=1996 |publisher=University of Wisconsin Press |isbn=978-0-299-15070-9 |pages=113 |language=en}}</ref> besides others.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Das |first=Sisir Kumar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sqBjpV9OzcsC&dq=gautam+vyathit&pg=PA702 |title=A History of Indian Literature: 1911-1956, struggle for freedom : triumph and tragedy |date=2005 |publisher=Sahitya Akademi |isbn=978-81-7201-798-9 |pages=702 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Lavie |first1=Smadar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uRWbDwAAQBAJ&dq=gautam+vyathit&pg=PT242 |title=Displacement, Diaspora, and Geographies of Identity |last2=Swedenburg |first2=Ted |date=22 July 2013 |publisher=Duke University Press |isbn=978-0-8223-7957-7 |language=en}}</ref> Since the early 1970s, Vyathit has been known for re-choreographing Kangra's Jhamakara folk-dance, which earlier used to be performed by women during marriage festivities only behind closed doors, and promoting this dance as a public art form.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /> Vyathit is known for revitalising Kangra's traditional folk-theatre, infusing it with current themes and challenging traditional norms of participation in these plays.<ref name=":3" />

=== Poetry ===
Vyathit is widely considered a prominent poet from Himachal Pradesh.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=George |first=K. M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m1R2Pa3f7r0C&dq=gautam+vyathit&pg=PA103 |title=Modern Indian Literature, an Anthology: Surveys and poems |date=1992 |publisher=Sahitya Akademi |isbn=978-81-7201-324-0 |pages=103 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Datta |first=Amaresh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zB4n3MVozbUC&dq=gautam+vyathit&pg=PA1601 |title=Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature: Devraj to Jyoti |date=1988 |publisher=Sahitya Akademi |isbn=978-81-260-1194-0 |pages=1601 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last=Dutt |first=K. C. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-W1OAAAAYAAJ&q=gautam+vyathit |title=Who's who of Indian Writers: 1999 : In 2 Vol. Vol. 1 A-M |date=1999 |publisher=Sahitya Akademi |isbn=978-81-260-0873-5 |pages=1193 |language=en}}</ref> He writes in [[Kangri language|Kangri]] and Hindi. His poems revolve around rural life and nature in Kangra. Atma Ram notes that Vyathit expresses the 'vyatha' (suffering; from which the pen-name 'vyathit' is derived) of the common person in rural Kangra.<ref name=":4" />

=== Linguistics ===
Vyathit contributed the sections on [[Kangri language|Kangri]] and [[Hindi]] for the Himachal Pradesh volume of the [[People's Linguistic Survey of India]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=PLSI Contributors |url=https://bhasha.frappe.cloud/plsi/contributors |access-date=4 January 2023 |website=bhasha.frappe.cloud |language=en}}</ref>

=== Others ===

* Vyathit has been a patron of [[Kangra painting]] revival since the 1970s.<ref name=":6" />
* Vyathit is a member of the Himachal Pradesh Brahmin Kalyan Board.<ref>{{Cite web |title=List of Members of H.P. Brahmin Kalyan Board |url=https://himachal.nic.in/WriteReadData/l892s/21_l892s/1440233315.pdf}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=CM announces Makar Sakranti of Brijeshwari Dham as District Level Festival |url=http://www.himachalpr.gov.in/%28X%281%29%29/OnePressRelease.aspx?Language=1&ID=15730}}</ref>

== Recognition ==
Some among the numerous awards received by Vyathit are the following:<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":4" />
* In 2007, Vyathit shared the [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] (Bhasha Samman) with Pratyush Guleri for his contributions to the Himachali language and literature.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sahitya Academy - List of Bhasha Samman Awardees |url=https://sahitya-akademi.gov.in/awards/Bhasha-Samman_Suchi.pdf}}</ref>
* In 2014, Vyathit received the ''Shan-e-Himachal Award'' from [[Virbhadra Singh]], then Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh.<ref name=":6" />
* In 2016, Vyathit received the ''Himachal Shiromani Samman'' from the Himachal Sanskritik Shodh Sansthan evam Natya Rangmandal.<ref name=":6" />
* In 2022, Vyathit received the ''Himachal Gaurav Puraskar'' (Pride of Himachal Award) of the [[Government of Himachal Pradesh]], from [[Jai Ram Thakur]], then Chief Minister of the state.<ref name=":6" />

== Select Bibliography ==

* (1973) ''Kangri Lok Geet''. Palampur: Sheela Prakashan
* (1973) ''Dholru:'' ''Himachal ki lok gathae.''
* (1984) ''Kāṅgaṛā ke lokagīta, sāhityika viśleshaṇa evaṃ mūlyāṅkana''. Jayaśrī prakāśana
* (2000) ''Bharatiya sahitya ke nirmata: Baba Kanshi Ram''.
* (2006) ''Folklore of Himachal Pradesh''. Delhi: National Book Trust.

== References ==
<references />

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gautam Sharma Vyathit}}
[[Category:People from Kangra district]]
[[Category:Writers from Himachal Pradesh]]
[[Category:Poets from Himachal Pradesh]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian male writers]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian male writers]]
[[Category:Indian folk-song collectors]]
[[Category:Dogri-language writers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian linguists]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian linguists]]
[[Category:Guru Nanak Dev University alumni]]
[[Category:Panjab University alumni]]
[[Category:Himalayan studies]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian musicologists]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian musicologists]]
[[Category:People from Punjab Province (British India)]]
[[Category:1938 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]

Gautam Sharma "Vyathit" - Revision history

TheHH: Started Biography