Poet and director of Oxford Business College Dr Padmesh Gupta is to receive the Padmabhushan Moturi Satyanarayan Award for his poems written in Hindi.
Dr Gupta said: “It was a great honour when I found out. My poetry touches base with simpler life and smaller incidents, which I pick up on. Every day inspires me.
I feel that people living outside India, when they write in Indian languages, bring that culture and literature to so many people.”
The award is similar to the Order of the British Empire, and recognises exceptional contribution to Indian literature. It is part of the Hindi Sevi Samman Awards which are given for the promotion of Hindi abroad.
Dr Gupta, who also owns Eurobar on George Street, has lived in Oxford since 2006. He has been writing poetry for more than 30 years, and has published and edited the Hindi magazine Purvai for 18 years.
He will receive the award along with one other non-resident Indian in May. The winners are awarded with a prize of around £7000, a citation and a shawl from President Pranab Mukherjee.
