Dhansukhlal Mehta

Dhansukhlal Mehta Biography

Dhansukhlal Mehta was a well-known Gujarati writer known as a pioneer of short stories, based on common man’s daily life. He co-authored humorous novel Ame Badha with Jyotindra Dave which is widely regarded as one of the best humorous novels in Gujarati literature. He received the Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak in 1940, Narmad Suvarna Chandrak in 1957 and many more honours. He is known as a novelist, humourist and story teller. He lived during the period, 1890-1974 and passed away at the age of 83.

Dhansukhlal Krishnalal Mehta was born on 20 October 1890 in Wadhwan, Gujarat. His birth place now belongs to Surendranagar district, Gujarat. But his ancestral home is in Surat. He did his schooling from different places such as Wadhwan, Palitana and Surat, and to pursue higher studies he moved to Mumbai. He took a diploma from Victoria Jubilee Technical Institute, Mumbai, and marked the beginning of his professional career. He worked at various places in Mumbai for next 11 years till 1925 and finally joined Scindia Steam Navigation Company in 1925.

As a writer he gained recognition as a story teller and is best known as a humourist. He reviewed several books and also authored an autobiography. Contemporary family life remained the main theme of his short stories, and he could easily connect with common man through his story weaving power. He also wrote humorous essays and sketches. His first short story was published in the year 1908 in a magazine, and later he compiled several collections of stories and published them. His works are mostly enjoyed by common people belonging to middle class. He co-authored Dhumraser with Gulabdas Broker.

Published: January 14, 2019

Updated: January 14, 2019