Kundera, who was one of the biggest names in European Literature, was a poetic and satirical author.

Born in 1929, Kundera studied in Prague and became a lecturer in world literature.

He had also served the ruling Communist Party.

However, his scathing criticism of the Communist regime of Czechoslovakia saw him flee to France in 1975.

His first novel, 'The Joke', which was published in 1967, led to a ban on his writing in Czechoslovakia.

Among the awards which he received were Jerusalem Prize in 1985, the Austrian State Prize for European Literature in 1987, the Herder Prize in 2000.

He received the Golden Order of Merit from Slovenia President in 2021.