Madanhire, Nevanji

NEVANJI MADANHIRE, born 1961, has lived a varied life reflecting the restlessness of growing up in an amorphous fledgling Zimbabwe. As a teenager, Nevanji saw the political fission resulting from the dying years of the war of liberation when most of his classmates were forced to either join the liberation forces or be conscripted into the Rhodesian army. Because of cowardice he only chose to throw a few stones at the establishment from the safety of the mobs of demonstrating students. The three decades of independence saw the pain of a nation dismally failing to define itself, and became for Nevanji, a period of soul-searching during which he worked as a teacher, a curriculum theorist, an educational book publisher, a public relations executive and a journalist. As editor of The Standard, a weekly Sunday newspaper he provided political commentary on issues that continue to vex the Zimbabwean body politic. He has also developed a passion for the environment shown by his crusading anti-litter campaign. He is currently editor ofNews Day.

He has published two books, Goatsmell, (1993) and If the Wind Blew, (1995). Nevanji was published in Writing Still(2003) and Writing Lives (2013). His short story ‘The Grim Reaper’s Car’ was translated into Shona for the anthology Mazambuko(2010).

Contact: www.zw.linkedin.com/pub/nevanji-madanhire/66/b31/571