Introduction
Deva Virahsawmy (born 1942 in Quartier Militaire, Mauritius), is a politician, playwright, poet and advocate of the Mauritian Creole language. Though he writes easily in both French and English, Virahsawmy is most renowned for his efforts to popularize the use of Creole.
Early life
Virahsawmy spent his early childhood in Goodlands but after the death of his mother he went to live with his grandparents at Beau-Bassin. After having done his secondary education, he went to Scotland at the Edinburgh University to study languages, literature and linguistics.
Political life
Between 1966 and 1987, he was a politician and one of the three leaders of the Mauritian Militant Movement.
Since leaving politics he has concentrated on play-writing. He is associated with the early protest theatre in Mauritius. Virahsawmy is married to Loga Virahsawmy, a feminist and chairperson of Gender and Media Southern Africa.
Works
Including:
- Zeneral Makbef (1981)
- Banham, Martin. A history of theatre in Africa. p. 414.
- "Adapted from Shakespeare - Zeneral Makbef". oxfordreference.com. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
Influence
Some of the lyrics of Ziskakan are from early poems by Virahsawmy.