Sir — The 93rd Academy Awards, which was held on Sunday, has been lauded as the most diverse in terms of nominations in its long history. With an unprecedented inclusion of women and people of colour, and the award for direction going to Chloé Zhao, a woman of colour, the Oscars, it is hoped, has paved the way for inclusivity in entertainment. Hopefully, other award shows will now follow suit.

Aparajita Saha,
Calcutta

End of an era

Sir — The passing of Sankha Ghosh at the age of 89 to Covid-19 marks the end of a generation of Bengali poets who captured the cadences of the land and the language in all its colloquialism (“In death too, a quiet message from Ghosh”, April 22). Born in Chandpur, now in Bangladesh, Ghosh was a quintessential academic. He was not only a poet but also a critic and a storyteller.

The birth of the little magazine, Krittibas, in 1953 ushered in a new wave of modernism in Bengali literature. Meant as a platform for upcoming poets, it nurtured writers such as Sankha Ghosh, Shakti Chattopadhyay, Sunil Gangopadhyay and Binoy Majumdar, who forged a new identity for contemporary Bengali poetry. These poets sought a deeper engagement with middle-class preoccupations such as employment, politics, ambition, idealism and love. In collections such as Dinguli Raatguli, Murkho Boro, Samajik Noy, Mukh Dheke Jay Bigyapone and Babarer Prarthana, Ghosh broke out with his experiments in meter and theme, writing on communal violence, capitalism and the process of ageing.

There are also numerous instances of the dedicated political humanism of Ghosh. He protested against the 2002 Gujarat riots and the violence in Nandigram in 2007, wrote against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the murders of public intellectuals. Ghosh, like many of his contemporaries, was unflinching in his criticisms of society. He will be missed.

Khokan Das,
Calcutta

Sir — Sankha Ghosh was one of the most revered poets of his time who stood out for voicing his concerns on various social and political issues. He spoke against intolerance and strove to give a voice to the common people. His poems will continue to move people across generations.

Rudra Dasgupta,
Calcutta