Salman Rushdie was attacked; is he now dead? How did Padma Lakshmi’s ex-husband fare?

Salman Rushdie is said to have been assaulted while traveling to the Chautauqua Institute to deliver a speech.

Produced by an Indian-born author, his writing combined magical realism with historical fiction and dealt mainly with the interactions, wars and migrations between Eastern and Western civilizations, many of which took place in the Indian subcontinent.

Salman Rushdie was attacked; is he dead now?

Salman Rushdie, a novelist, was reportedly assaulted Friday in New York, United States, just before he was due to give a lecture. As a result of his writings, he received death threats from Iran in the 1980s.

An Associated Press reporter witnessed a man attack the Chautauqua Institute stage while Rushdie was being presented and began hitting or stabbing Rushdie. The author was chained after taking off or being knocked to the ground.

Rushdie’s “The Satanic Verses” has been illegal in Iran since 1988 because many Muslims find it offensive. The late Iranian President Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini demanded Rushdie’s execution in a fatwa, or ruling, issued a year later. According to reports, there is a $3 million bounty on Rushdie’s head.

One of the first to respond was Delhi-based British novelist William Dalrymple, who hoped Mr Rushdie had not been injured. He tweeted: “A terrible day for literature, free speech and writers everywhere. Poor Salman, I hope he avoids injuries and recovers quickly.”

What happened to Padma Lakshmi’s ex-husband? Attacks on Salman Rushdie are brutally executed

In the late 1980s, threats were made against Mr Rushdie, Padma Lakshmi’s ex-husband, notably over his book The Satanic Verses, which has been illegal in Iran since 1988 over allegations that it violates Islam. The Iranian government stated that it had no plans to implement the “fatwa” or edict by 1998, despite the fact that Iran’s supreme leader has also set a bounty for his assassination. It is not clear whether the attack has anything to do with this.

When novelist Salman Rushdie and ‘Top Chef’ presenter Padma Lakshmi first met in 1999, she was amazed by his knowledge and eloquence. In an interview with People magazine, Lakshmi compared Rushdie’s fame in India to Hemingway’s fame in the United States.

He was definitely the nicest thing that ever happened to Lakshmi, she claimed in an interview with People magazine. That someone of that stature and grandeur would be even remotely interested in her enough to take me out to dinner seemed a little unbelievable.

He discussed their union in her candid book Love, Loss, and What We Ate. Lakshmi and Rushdie were married and the early years of their union were generally joyful years. According to Lakshmi’s interview with People magazine, “For me it was great because I finally had someone who understood me, since he was also Indian and he also lived in the West, and he was very adept at navigating those two worlds.” But after only a few years together, she finally understood the tumultuous nature of their relationship.