| Jemal Karchkhadze | |
| Birth Date: | 13 May 1936 |
| Birth Place: | Ukhuti, Georgian SSR |
| Death Place: | Tbilisi, Georgia |
| Movement: | Modernism, magic realism |
| Notableworks: | Antonio and David, Zebulon, Igi |
Jemal Karchkhadze (Georgian: ჯემალ ქარჩხაძე; 1936–1998) was a Georgian writer. He is the author of six novels, some short stories and essays. His works are conceptual and gained popularity after his death. His novel Antonio and David (Georgian: ანტონიო და დავითი, 1987) was published in Swedish in 2013, in Arabic in 2014 and in English in 2015.[1]
Jemal Karchkhadze was born in 1936 in the village of Ukhuti in Vani in western Georgia. He graduated in 1960 with a degree in Georgian language and literature at Tbilisi State University. His short story Igi (Georgian: იგი) was published in 1977. This was followed by his most important novels The Caravan (Georgian: ქარავანი, 1984), Antonio and David (Georgian: ანტონიო და დავითი, 1987) and Zebulon (Georgian: ზებულონი, 1988). He died in 1998 in Tbilisi and is buried at the Didube Pantheon.[2]
Jemal Karchkhadze was granted three literary awards: 1999 – Georgian State Award for Dimension (Georgian: განზომილება) and for his Contribution to the National Literature; 2007 – Award “Gala” for Complete Short Stories; 2007 – Award Librarian’s Choice for a novel Antonio and David (Georgian: ანტონიო და დავითი).
The play Devidze Family was shown in major theaters across Georgia, including Marjanishvili Theater in 1964-1965.[3] This was followed by a TV-play “Operation Aunt Taso” based on the eponymous short story transmitted in the late 1970s. A performance based on "Igi" is regularly shown at the Movement Theater in Tbilisi,[4] while a full-length animation is in the works by 20 Steps Production[5] and has already collected accolades and prizes, such as the Annecy International Animation Festival MIFA Pitch in 2022[6] and Best Feature Animation Award at CEE Animation Forum 2020.[7] The animated movie Igi is set to be released in 2025 and is a Georgian-Czech co-production.