Ravi Deecee, publisher, CEO and managing director of DC Books, was awarded the insignia of Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters) at a ceremony held at the Embassy of France in New Delhi on 4 December 2025.
The award was conferred by the Ambassador of France to India, Thierry Mathou, at an event that brought together eminent personalities from India’s literary and cultural spheres, celebrating Deecee’s decades-long influence on the publishing landscape.
The award recognizes Deecee’s lifelong commitment to multilingualism, literary innovation, and global cultural collaboration. Translations have long been central to DC Books’ mission of fostering cross-cultural dialogue, with the publisher producing Malayalam editions of major contemporary French works.
The works include Annie Ernaux’s Getting Lost, Louis-Ferdinand Céline’s Journey to the End of the Night, Johanna Gustawsson’s Roy and Castells trilogy, Jean-Paul Sartre’s Nausea, Emmanuel Carrère’s The Adversary, David Diop’s 2021 International Booker Prize-winning At Night All Blood Is Black, and the most recent publication, Maryse Condé’s The Gospel According to the New World.
In addition to publishing, DC Books has played a pivotal role in bringing international authors to Kerala through its Vagamon Writers Residency, which has been part of the Villa Swagatam program of the French Embassy since its very inception.
By integrating global voices into the literary ecosystem of Kerala, the Vagamon Writers Residency has become not only a space for individual artistic growth but also a platform for mutual understanding and lasting cultural connections, embodying the very spirit of the Order of Arts and Letters.
During the investiture, Ambassador Thierry Mathou said, “Ravi Deecee has spearheaded the transformation of DC Books into one of India’s leading publishing houses, building a catalog of renowned French works translated into Malayalam. In his various capacities as publisher, co-founder of the Kerala Literature Festival, and facilitator of the Vagamon Writers Residency under France’s Villa Swagatam program, Deecee harnesses the power of ink and paper to enable the exchange of knowledge across cultures, languages, and countries.”
Accepting the award, Ravi Deecee said, “As I receive this honor, I am reminded that the most meaningful legacy is not what we leave behind, but what we leave within others. My family’s three-generation journey in Malayalam publishing grew from this belief. Books shape values, expand imagination, and nurture empathy across cultures. In that sense, literature is one of the most enduring gifts we can offer society.”
Instituted in 1957, the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Order of Arts and Letters) holds a unique place at the heart of French cultural policy. It recognizes those who have made remarkable contributions to the promotion and enrichment of arts and culture in France and around the world. For over sixty-five years, the order has honored creators, thinkers, visionaries, and cultural ambassadors.
Renowned Indian recipients include writers Mahasweta Devi, Upamanyu Chatterjee, M Mukundan, actors Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Kamal Haasan, Shah Rukh Khan, and fashion designer Rahul Mishra, to name but a few.
More recently, Tamil publisher Kannan Sundaram, publishing executive Aditi Maheshwari, filmmaker Payal Kapadia and cultural philanthropist Sangita Jindal were awarded. Deecee joins this cohort for his dedication to literature and the advancement of Indo-French cultural exchanges.
