Muzaffarpur: Barely hours after refusing the
Padmashri conferred on him this year, eminent poet Acharya
Janaki Ballabh Shastri agreed to accept it.
Shastri agreed to accept the honour following requests by
his well-wishers and admirers, one of his family members said.
Earlier, when approached for his comments Shastri said "I
had refused the gesture of awarding me the Padmashri way back
in 1994 ... It doesn`t carry any meaning for me at this stage
and age."
"My disciples and younger generation deserve the award
more than me," the octogenarian poet had said.
Acharya Shastri is the author of many well-known
stories, novels, plays, essays, gazals, songs and biography in
Hindi besides being a critic. His famous works include `Roop
Aaroop`, `Teer Tarang`, `Meghgeet`, `Pashani`, `Tamsa` and
`Iravati`.
He has been conferred with various awards like Rajendra
Shikhar Samman, Bharat Bharati Award and Shivpujan Sahay
Award.
PTI
