Famous Czech writer Milan Kundera has died at the age of 95

radio.cz:  Renowned Czech writer Milan Kundera, who resided in France since 1975, passed away at the age of 94, according to Anna Mrazova, the press secretary of the Czech Republic's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Kundera's notable literary works include "The Unbearable Lightness of Being," "The Joke," "Farewell Waltz," and "Slowness." His final novel written in Czech was "Immortality" in 1990, after which he began writing in French.

Milan Kundera has emerged as one of the most celebrated contemporary writers, with each of his new works contributing to the ranks of best-selling intellectual prose. Born on April 1, 1929, in Brno, Kundera played a prominent role in Czechoslovakia's cultural scene during the 1960s. However, his works faced a ban shortly after the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in August 1968.

Having emigrated to France in 1975, Kundera became a regular author at the Parisian publishing house Gallimard. He switched to writing exclusively in French in the 1990s, while his Czech works were published by the emigrant publishing house Shkvoretsky 68 Publishers.

In 1979, Kundera was stripped of Czechoslovak citizenship, eventually becoming a French citizen in 1981. He received Czech Republic citizenship only in 2019. Despite making several visits to Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic following the "Velvet Revolution" in 1989, Kundera and his wife Vera continued to reside permanently in Paris.

Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala expressed his condolences to Vera Kundera and described Milan Kundera as a writer who captivated readers across generations and achieved worldwide fame. The Prime Minister acknowledged Kundera's connection to Brno and noted his contributions not only as a fiction writer but also as an exceptional essayist.

Culture Minister Martin Baksa stated that Kundera's demise marked the loss of one of the most extraordinary contemporary writers in Czech and world literature. Baksa emphasized Kundera's reflections on the fundamental values of European culture, his interest in individuality, and his significant contributions to the history of the global novel.

Milan Kundera's works have been translated into numerous languages, including Russian. In the 1990s, his popularity in Russia soared with the translations done by Nina Shulgina.