Salman Rushdie’s boys are the focus of this article as the author was stabbed and is in critical condition.
Salman Rushdie, a writer, was stabbed in the neck onstage at the Chautauqua Institution in New York on Friday, August 12, in a horrific attack.
The perpetrator was quickly evacuated to a nearby hospital and the suspect, later identified as 24-year-old Hadi Matar, was taken into custody. Rushdie was stabbed in the neck and abdomen shortly after the event, according to New York State Police Maj. Eugene Staniszewski:
Rushdie was stabbed at least twice, once in the neck and once in the stomach, by the suspect when he ran onto the stage and began attacking Rushdie.
After the incident, the perpetrator was seen in photos from the scene lying on the ground while emergency personnel crouched over him. Videos also showed Rushdie being pushed on a stretcher toward a helicopter.
Hours after the event, it was revealed that the novelist was “undergoing surgery”. Rushdie was recently put on a ventilator and suffered serious injuries, according to the author’s agent, Andrew Wylie, who spoke to The New York Times:
“It is not good news. Salman’s arm nerves were severed, his liver was punctured and he was likely injured.
Salman Rushdie has been married four times and is the proud father of Milan and Zafar. In 1976 he married for the first time to Clarissa Luard, head of literature at the Arts Council of England. In 1969, the latter and the then unpublished author met at a concert.
Before getting married in 1976, the couple started living together when she was responsible for advertising at Paul Elek editions. Zafar was born to the couple in 1979, but they divorced two years later in 1987.
Salman Rushdie’s children
Reportedly, Zafar has his own PR firm and is married to jazz musician Natalie Rushdie from London.
With his third wife, British publisher and author Elizabeth West, Rushdie also has a son named Milan. About Milan, not much is known. He maintains a modest profile and does not post frequently on social media.
When she co-edited Rushdie’s 1997 book, Mirrorwork: 50 Years of Indian Writing 1947-1997, West worked with him. In the same year they got married, and in 1999 they had their son. Eventually, the couple divorced in 2004. Rushdie was previously married to American author Marianne Wiggins.
After marrying in 1988, the couple moved to London while Rushdie dealt with the fatwa issued by Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini about his novel The Satanic Verses. Both Rushdie and Wiggins went into hiding, but the two separated in 1993.
Rushdie married Indian model, actress, cookbook author and Top Chef host Padma Lakshmi in 2005 after divorcing Elizabeth West in 2004. The couple separated in 2007 without having any children.
Rushdie’s four marriages all ended in divorce, but he maintained a close relationship with his sons. Additionally, he included a dedication to Joseph Anton for Milan and Zafar Rushdie as well as their mothers, Clarissa and Elizabeth.
