Vikas Swarup

The author of "Slumdog Millionaire", Vikas Swarup, was born in Allahabad, India, where he then attended the university that resided there. He studied History, Psychology and Philosopy and became a well know "champion debater, winning National level competitions." After he graduated, he then joined the Indian Foreign Swervice in 1986 due to his high interest in international relations and to explore various cultures.

His diplomatic career has allowed him to travel in multiple areas such as, Turkey, the United States, Ethiopia and the United Kingdom.

His debut novel, "Slumdog Millionaire", formerly known as "Q and A", has been critically acclaimed to be an international bestseller. It is currently available in forty-one different languages and the film has won eight out of ten oscar nominations along with more than 70 other awards including 4 Golden Globes. He has also published a second novel called "Six Suspects" as well as a short story called "A Great Event".

Vikas has also participated in various film and literature festivals such as, the Oxford Literary Festival, the Kitab festival in New Delhi, and the St. Malo International Book & Film Festival in France.

In his spare time Vikas enjoys reading, playing table tennis, tennis, cricket and listening to music. His wife, Aparna, who is an artist, hold exhibitions throughout India and abroad. Viskar also has two sons whose names are Aditya and Varun.

http://www.vikasswarup.net/index_files/page0008.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vikas_Swarup