Devdutt Patnaik is a popular Indian mythologist, speaker, painter and writer. His writings are mainly about myth, religion, mythology and management.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Devdutt was born on Friday, 11 December 1970 (age 50 years; as in 2020) in Mumbai. His childhood was spent in Chembur, Mumbai. Their zodiac sign is Sagittarius.
Devdutt Patnaik’s childhood picture with his mother
Childhood picture of Devdutt Patnaik with his parents and sisters
From 1975 to 1986, he attended Our Lady of Perpetual Succor High School in Chembur, Mumbai. He continued his schooling at Ramnarayan Ruia College, Mumbai from 1986 to 1988. He received his bachelor’s degree in medicine from Grant Medical College, Mumbai from 1988 to 1993. He did a Post Graduate Diploma in Comparative Mythology at the Department of Sanskrit, Mumbai. university. When he was in 10th grade, he looked up the word gay in the dictionary and that was when he realized that gay meant exactly who he was. Talking about such an incident in an interview, he said,
I was in 10th grade when I saw the movie Jewel on the Crown… I heard the word gay.. and I looked in the dictionary and I knew that was me. When I turned 30 and my parents were in favor of me getting married and settling down, I finally told them the truth that I was gay and would not marry.
Physical Appearance
Height (Approx): 5′ 6″
Eye colour: black
Hair Color: Salt and Pepper (dyed black)
family and caste
Devdutt was born in an Oriya family of Karan caste. The Karan caste is known as Karanam in Andhra Pradesh, Kayastha in the Gangetic plains and Bengal and Prabhu in Maharashtra.
parents and siblings
His father’s name is Prafull Kumar Patnaik and mother’s name is Sabitri Patnaik Das. Devdutt was born after his two sisters, Seema Patnaik and Sami Patnaik. He was born after an interval of eight years from his other sister.
Devdutt Patnaik with his sisters
livelihood
In the mid-90s, Indian magazine editor Randhir Khare took notice of his writing and storytelling skills. Khare encouraged Devdutt to write articles for newspapers and magazines and later, introduced Devdutt to his friend Arun Mehta who encouraged Devdutt to write his first book. In 1997, Devdutt wrote his first book ‘Shiva An Introduction’.
Devdutt Patnaik’s first book- Shiva An Introduction
He has also worked as a freelance writer and illustrator for many famous magazines and newspapers.
Devdutt Patnaik’s article in a newspaper
Devdutt has also worked as a part-time editor for health magazines like ‘My Doctor’. He has also assisted behavioral scientist Dr. Giri Shankar. In February 1998, he started working at ‘Good Health N U’ in Mumbai. In 2000, he joined ‘Apollo Health Street Limited’ in Hyderabad. After this he worked in various companies like Sanofi, EY and Future Group People Office. In January 2012, he joined Star India as a story consultant for mythological TV serials like ‘Devon Ke Dev…Mahadev’. In January 2014, he joined ‘Reliance Industries Limited’ as a culture consultant and worked there for about 5 years. In November 2009, he appeared as a speaker at the first TED conference in India.
Devdutt has written many popular mythological books such as:
- ‘Hanuman: An Introduction. Lawyers, Pfeffer & Simmons Ltd, 2001’
- ‘Mithaka=Mithya: A Handbook of Hindu Mythology. Penguin Books India, 2006’
- ‘7 secrets of Shiva. Westland Limited, 2011’
- ‘Ramayana vs Mahabharata: My playful comparison. Rupa Publications India, 2018’
- ‘Dharma Artha Kama Moksha: 40 Insights into Happiness – HarperCollins, India, 2021’
Apart from mythological books, he has also written various books on management, fiction and children. Some of his books on management are:
- ‘Business Sutras:’ A Very Indian Approach to Management. Aleph Book Company, 2013′
- ‘Leadership Formula: An Indian Approach to Power. Aleph Book Company, 2016’
- ‘Leaders: 50 Insights from Mythology. HarperCollins India, Indus Source 2017’
Devdutt Patnaik displaying his books
His other popular books are:
- ‘Pregnant King. Penguin Books India, 2008’
- ‘Is that fresh?:aka koula hai?’ (Penguin Petit). Penguin UK, 2015′
- ‘Fun in Devlok: Shiva acts foolishly. Puffin India, 2011’
- ‘The Boys Who Fought: The Mahabharata for Children. Puffin, 2017’
- ‘Vahaans: Deities and their favorite animals – Rupa Publications India, 2020’
Devdutt has appeared in various TV serials such as ‘Business Sutra’ (2010) on CNBC-TV18 and ‘Devlok with Devdutt Patnaik’ (2017) on Epic TV.
In 2020, he lent his voice to audiobooks like ‘Suno Mahabharat with Devdutt Patnaik’ and ‘Revisiting Mahabharat with Devdutt Patnaik’. Devdutt has also incorporated the concepts of Mahabharata and Ramayana in human resource management. He has been working as a columnist for many leading newspapers like Mid-Day, Times of India, CN Traveller, Daily O and Scroll.in. He has hosted a podcast radio show ‘The Devdutt Patnaik Show’ which airs on Radio Mirchi.
Controversy
His controversial tweets always remain a topic of discussion. He has received heavy criticism from netizens for posting derogatory and hurtful tweets. There are some such tweets
Quiet witch, why are you in a hurry? What happened to Limbu Mirchi Band?”
Devdutt Patnaik’s controversial tweet
Devdutt Patnaik’s tweet
Awards and Honors
- In 2014, his name was listed in the top category of best-selling Indian authors.
- His book ‘Devlok’ was one of the best selling books of 2016.
- The same year, he was named among Forbes’ Top 100 Celebrities of India.
Signature
Signature of Devdutt Patnaik
Facts/General Knowledge
- When he was in school, he was introduced to the stories of Ramayana. During an interview he shared some memories remembering his school days, he said,
I remember collecting pigeon feathers to help my teacher prepare Jatayu’s feathers. I remember watching Laxman struggling to mark three sight lines using precious white chalk on the well-polished brown stone floor otherwise used by teachers on the blackboard. I remember that when Ravana took Sita away, I laughed and joked with others because Sita was a boy disguised as a girl.
- After graduation he passed the Union Public Service Commission examination, but due to lack of interest he refused to take up the assignment.
- When he was in college, he wrote his first mythological column in his college magazine.
- The pictures presented in his book were made by Devdutt himself. (Except Devlok series).
- After graduation, he wanted to continue his studies in American or European universities, but could not do so due to constraints from his family.
- In 2000, he wrote an essay titled ‘Homosexuality in Ancient India’ and received much appreciation from the gay community.
- Devdutt Patnaik follows a non-vegetarian diet.
- He has also appeared as a motivational speaker at various events and seminars.
Devdutt Patnaik at a conference
- He has been supporting the LGBTQ community even before Section 377 was decriminalized in India on 6 September 2018. Talking about Section 377 in one of his social media posts, he said,
I think for many people it will be life as usual. But for many people it will be acceptable at the state level. And you can talk to your family. Hopefully corporations will change their laws. You will be able to come out openly as gay. And you will not fall into a forced marriage where you ruin the lives of not just one, but two people. You know imagine a gay person marrying a non-gay person. This is simply not true. It ruins the lives of youth.”
- Many famous writers like Ashwin Sanghi and Neil Gaiman have praised his work.
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Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn