Yu Qiuyu is perhaps one of the most outstanding and controversial scholars in China's world of literature.

He was born in a country village in eastern China's Zhejiang Province in 1946. In his early 30s, he went to live in a mountain area at the end of "culture revolution" (1966-76) and read as widely as he could.

He won many awards and wrote extensively on the theory of drama during and after his term as president of Shanghai Theater Academy in the mid 1980s.

His "Drama Theory History Notes," published in 1983, is the first book with a China perspective to discuss the integrated development of culture and drama.

He became the youngest art professor on China's mainland at age 39, an exceptional appointment as he had never been a vice professor.

At the end of the 1980s, he quit as president of Shanghai Theater Academy and started his "bitter journey of culture," reverting to a period of learning, traveling the world as a scholar.

His collections of essays, including "Bitter Journey of Culture," "Notes Made While Living in the Hills" and "The Long River Chilled in Frost," are all best sellers.

Yu is also famous for his forthright criticism of aspects of Chinese culture which earned the disdain of many and alienated him from his readers.

His reputation has been built on strong views and his criticism and rejection of long-held beliefs.

Publications that subsequently attacked his opinions of China's "culture revolution" and found fault in his writings, such as alleged historical mistakes, have all found a wide readership and sold well.

In December last year, the musical "Long River," written by Yu, starring his wife Ma Lan and directed by famous Hong Kong director Stanley Kwan, made its debut in Shanghai.

"We hope to combine Chinese drama and music in a bid to tell an ancient Chinese story," Yu said.

But Yu's reputation for controversy continued to follow him and his "cross-border experiment" drew criticism, with some detractors citing it as "neither fish nor fowl."

On a chilly winter afternoon in Shanghai on the sidelines of rehearsals for "Long River," Yu sat down for this interview at a quiet tearoom.

He had been working through the night and only managed to grab snatches of sleep but, despite that, was comfortable and confident in discussing his career.