Farrukh Dhondy
Farrukh Dhondy (born 1944) is an Indian-born British writer, playwright, screenwriter and left-wing activist who resides in the United Kingdom. Education. Dhondy was born in 1944 in Poona, India, where he attended The Bishop's School, and obtained a BSc degree from the University of Poona (1964). He won a scholarship to Pembroke College, Cambridge where he read Natural Sciences before switching to English, earning a BA degree in 1967. After graduating he studied for a master's degree at Leicester University and was later a lecturer at Leicester College of Further Education and Archbishop Temple  School in Lambeth in London. Early activism. In Leicester, Dhondy became involved with the Indian Workers' Association and later, in London, with the British Black Panthers, joining the publication "Race Today" in 1970, along with his close friend Darcus Howe, and former partner Mala Sen, and discovering his calling as a writer. Writing. Dhondy's literary output is extensive, including books for children, textbooks and biographies, as well as plays for theatre and scripts for film and television. He is also a columnist, a biographer (of C. L. R. James; 2001), and media executive, having been Commissioning Editor at Channel  Four television from 1984 to 1997. During his time with Channel Four, he wrote the comedy series "Tandoori Nights" (1985–87) for the channel, which concerned the rivalry of two curry-house owners. His children's stories include "KBW (Keep Britain White)", a study of a young white boy's response to anti-Bengali racism. In 2011 Dhondy published his translation of selections from the Sufi poet Jalaluddin Rumi, "Rumi: a New Translation". Dhondy also wrote the screenplay for the 2005 Bollywood historical blockbuster "", starring Aamir Khan and Toby Stephens. In 2012, Dhondy scripted a short film called "The K File . This film dealt with a fictional take on the judgement of Ajmal Kasab and was directed by Oorvazi Irani. In 2013, Dhondy's play Devdas" was premiered in London and was subsequently replayed globally. 2013 also saw the publication of his novel "Prophet Of Love" (HarperCollins). His collection of Rumi translations was published in 2014 and received a 4.5-star rating on Goodreads. Dhondy was lauded in the respected political magazine "New Internationalist", in its prestigious "final page", which led to the resurgence of his lifelong campaign to recruit more BAME talent at the BBC, with an article subsequently printed  in the "New Statesman" (covered in "The Voice" newspaper).