Dev Virahsawmy


Dev Virahsawmy, 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. On 22 September 1970 he became the first member of the MMM to be elected to the National Parliament by winning the vacant seat at by-elections held in Constituency No. 5. These by-elections resulted from the untimely death of former attorney general Lall Jugnauth who had been duly elected in Constituency No. 5 at the 1967 General Elections under the IFB banner. On 23 March 1973 Dev Virahsawmy left the MMM and formed his new party Mouvement Militant Mauricien Socialiste Progressiste.
Since leaving politics he has concentrated on playwriting. 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

Dev Virahsawmy is known for writing in Morisyen and translations from English and French to Morisyen.

Drama

Novels

in ''Morisien''

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Translations

In English

Some of the lyrics of Ziskakan are from early poems by Virahsawmy.