Author Dominique Lapierre, who wrote books like ‘freedom at midnight‘, ‘city of joy‘, Y ‘Beyond love‘ among others, passed away at the age of 91 on December 4, 2022. AFP he quoted his wife Dominique Conchon-Lapierre as saying: “At the age of 91, he died of old age… in peace and serene, since Dominique no longer suffers.”
Born on July 30, 1931, the French author had an attachment to India, which was reflected in his book city of joy which chronicles the hardships of a rickshaw puller in Kolkata. It was made into a movie in 1992 starring Patrick Swayze, directed by Roland Joffe.
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Lapierre is said to have donated half of the royalties he earned from the book to various humanitarian projects in calcuttaas shelters for people with leprosy and children affected by polio, for clinics and schools, rehabilitation and sanitation centers. In fact, after the release of this book, Calcutta even became known as the “City of Joy” and continues to be called as such.
Born in Chatelaillon, Lapierre, in collaboration with American writer Larry Collins, wrote many best-sellers and sold millions of copies. Weather city of joy is set in the Anand Nagar slum, based on the Pilkhana area of Howrah, West Bengal. freedom at midnightas its name suggests, it is based on the events surrounding the independence of India and the Split. It narrates the end of the British Raj, and culminates with the death and funeral of Mahatma Gandhi.
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Your book ‘Half past five at night Bhopal‘ is based on the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy that claimed many lives. Part of the royalties from the book funded a clinic in Bhopal that treated victims free of charge; the author also helped finance a primary school in one of the settlements described in the book.
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Weather ‘Is Paris burning?‘ is the story of the liberation of Paris in World War II, ‘Is New York burning?‘ is based three years after the 9/11 attackswhere terrorists have hidden an atomic bomb in the heart of the city, and time is ticking.
Photo: Amazon.in
Photo: Amazon.in
‘A rainbow in the night‘ tells the ‘tragic story’ of South Africa and the many men and women, black and white, European and African, who made the country what it is today, a ‘rainbow nation’.
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‘Beyond love‘ is the story of the fight against the AIDS virus, told through the lives of doctors, nurses and scientists working desperately to achieve this goal. Other works of his included ‘Or I will dress you in mourning‘, ‘oh jerusalem‘, ‘the fifth horseman‘ to name a few.
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Lapierre received the award padma bhushan – India’s third highest civilian award – in 2008.
These are some of the reactions to the news of his death:
Dominique Lapierre is dead.
The green property on the left is Elgin Fairlawn, 86, in Calcutta, where Lapierre wrote his City of Joy. pic.twitter.com/ZZHF8Jy2qa
— Amit Schandillia (@Schandillia) December 5, 2022
His pen ✒️ was power.
He ruled the hearts of millions, struck a chord with many struggling through his epic works like Freedom at Midnight, City of Joy, and Is Paris Burning.
With sadness at the passing of French writer Dominique Lapierre.
May his soul rest in peace. Om Shanti.🙏 pic.twitter.com/vhBCiHAOmh
— Sanjay Kumar Jha (@SanjayJhaBihar) December 5, 2022
One of the first books I read was Freedom at Midnight. He clarified many doubts I had about the fight for freedom. I still give it away to people sometimes. His other books are great too.
sad that #DominiqueLapierre it’s no more. pic.twitter.com/EXkALnIX10
—Rakesh (@rakeshkotti) December 5, 2022
Those were days of struggle when I was able to equate my ups and downs in life with Hasari Pal, the iconic character from #DominiqueLapierreThe city of happiness.
His description of hopes, aspirations in the midst of the gloom of poverty was transcendental.
Your life was the power of 🖊️, Lapierre. Rest in peace. pic.twitter.com/qrXAgas2sH
—Arvind Chowdhary (@drakchowdhary) December 5, 2022
He showed us the real Kolkata lagta.#DominiqueLapierrethe celebrated author who gave us Freedom at Midnight and City of Joy has passed away.
— Deepal.Trivedi #Vo! (@DeepalTrevedie) December 5, 2022
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