'Litterateurs Vikram Seth, Mahasweta Devi popular in Pak'

Indian writers like Vikram Seth, Mahasweta Devi and Manglesh Dabral are quite popular among book readers of Pakistan, writer-author from the neighbouring country Fahmida Riaz said.
"Vikram Seth is a popular name in Karachi. His book 'A suitable boy' is taught in Karachi University," Riaz, who was here to participate in Patna Literature festival, told PTI.
Besides, Seth, the urdu version of Mahasweta Devi's Hindi book 'Hazare Chaurasi ki maa' is widely read.
Books of Hindi writers like Manglesh Dabral, Uday Prakash and Vibhuti Narayan are also in great demand, Raiz said.
Riaz has lived in India from 1981 to 1987 in exile when Zia-ul-Haq was Pakistan President and got angry after reading her "Bhagat Singh ki Murat" (Statue of Bhagat Singh) dedicated to the revolutionary freedom fighter.

"Restriction imposed on movement of writers and artistes in the wake of tension between governments of the two countries is painful and people in our country are fed up," she added.

Riaz had served as the President of Pakistan Urdu Dictionary board during the PPP's (Peoples Party of Pakistan) rule.
She lamented that majority of literatures available in two countries were mostly found "biased" against each other to suit interest of the political class at the helm of affairs.
"Pakistan founder Mohammad Ali Zinnah has been portrayed as a demonic personality in India but in reality he was secular in nature.

The Pakistani literary fraternity favoured frequent interaction between art and cultural personalities between the two nations to ease tension and promote people-to-people contact", she added.