Aligarh, March 3 (IANS): Noted bilingual critic, scholar and columnist, Professor Shafey Kidwai has received the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award (2019) for his seminal Urdu work 'Sawanah-e-Sir Syed - Ek Bazdeed'.

The book seeks to revisit the biographical details and literary accomplishments of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and it supplements what has escaped the attention of many biographers of Sir Syed including Khawaja Altaf Husain Hali.

Prof Kidwai, also Chairman, Department of Mass Communication, has been honoured with Madya Pradesh government's prestigious award 'Iqbal Samman' in 2016 and Uttar Pradesh Urdu Academy's 'Amir Khusro Award' in 2018.

Prof Kidwai's Urdu books, 'Fiction Motaleyat: Ma-baad-e-Jadeed Tanazur' (2011) and 'Meeraji' (2001) are well discussed among reviewers. The Sahitya Akademi has published his monograph on R.K. Narayan in 2009. He has translated several books from English into Urdu including 'Michael Madhusudan Dutt' (1995) and 'Our Constitution' (2009). His book 'Khabar Nigari' (1988) is the first on the art of reporting in Urdu.