Katha Prize Stories: 7

Ashitha was a Malayali writer, renowned for her short stories, poems and translations. She played a key role in popularising the haiku poem in Malayalam literature. She was a recipient of multiple honours, like the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Story, Padmarajan Award, Lalithambika Anterjanam Sahitya Smarak Award and Edasseri Award.

Baldev Singh works as a transporter and has, to his credit, seven short story collections besides four novels. He has also written a number of plays and essays. He has won several awards including the Maxim Gorky Award (1987), the Nanak Singh Award (1989), the Nagmani Award and the Punjab Kala Sahitya Akademi Award (2011).

Dr Brinda Charry is an Associate Professor of English at Keane State College in New Hampshire, having taught English literature at Mount Carmel College in Bengaluru before her doctoral degree at Syracuse University. Apart from writing, she also enjoys reading and travelling by train, and is extremely fond of animals.

Writing in Malayalam under the pseudonym of Chandramati, Chandrika B has a PhD in English and has been a teacher for 19 years. She has also served as the Executive Director in the Medieval Indian Literature Project of the Sahitya Akademi. She has won several awards and fellowships including the FIP Research Scholarship from the UGC (1983-1986), a British Council Visitorship to UK (1993) and the Shastri Indo-Canadian Faculty Research Fellowship (1997-98).

Che Yoganathan has served for many years as deputy collector in Sri Lanka. His published works include novels, novellas, collections of short stories, children's books, biographies and criticism on cinema. He has won many awards, including the Tamil Nadu Government Award, Tamil Development Council's Award for Creative Writing (1984 and 1992), Sri Lanka Sahitya Akademi Mandalaya Best Writer Award (1974 and 1994), and the Ilakkiya Chintanai Best Novelist Award (1993).

Geeta Dharmarajan loves writing for children. She received the Padma Shri in 2012 for her work in literature and education. She was also the joint winner of the Business Standard Award for Social Entrepreneur of the Year in 2018.

Khalid Jawed is an Associate Professor at the Jamia Millia Islamia University in Delhi. He is renowned equally in India and Pakistan as an Urdu writer of repute. He is a recipient of the Katha Award (1997), the Upendranath Ashk Award by Hindustani Academy, Allahabad (1996) and the UP Urdu Academy Award UP Urdu Academy, Lucknow (2014).

Naiyer Masud was among the foremost contemporary Urdu short story writers in our country. His stories have been published in three volumes – Seemiya, Itr-e-Kafoor and Taus Chaman ki Maina. Recipient of the Presidential Certificate of Honour in 1997 for “outstanding contribution to Persian,” Naiyer Masud also received the Katha Award for Creative Fiction twice, in 1993 and 1997.

Nazir Mansuri is a Gujarati short story writer and novelist.

Pavanan was a renowned Malayalam journalist and writer. He won the Sahitya Akademi Writer in 1965 and the Soviet Land Nehru Award in 1979. He has authored more than a dozen books during his lifetime and explored all the major forms of writing: short story, essay, socio-political commentary literary criticism, writings on science and philosophy. He was an avowed rationalist and stayed one till the end of his life.

Phul Goswami is a teacher by profession. Her career as a creative writer began in the late 1950s with poetic contribution to various children's magazines. She started writing short stories as a way of jotting down her feelings about mundane day-to-day happenings. About fifty of her stories have been published. Books and films are her passion, as are old melodies in Asomiya, Bangla and Hindi.

Prem Parkash has been recognized as one of the greatest Punjabi short story writers post-1947. He is a recipient of several awards for his literary acumen, including the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1992.

Ram Swaroop Kisan writes in both Rajasthani and Hindi. His poems have been translated into Hindi and other languages. His collection of poems and stories in Hindi are Gaon ki Gali-Gali, and Bapu and Other Stories, respectively. Many of his works have been appeared on Akashvaani and Doordarshan. He received the Choudhary Ranbir Singh Memorial Award in 1997.

Sanjay Sahay started writing short stories when he was in his early twenties. These have been published in various literary journals. Director Goutam Ghose made his story "Sheshant" into a film. The film Patang bagged him the National Award for the best Hindi feature film in 1994.

Suchitra Bhattacharya was an Indian novelist writing in Bangla. She received the Nanjanagudu Thirumalamba Award for her novel Dahan in 1996.

Tarun Kanti Mishra is an Indian Oriya author. He is a recipient of the Katha Award, the Odisha Sahitya Akademi Award and the Sarala Award.

Vaidehi is one of the most prominent Indian women writers, and is a recipient of state and national literary awards. She received the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2009 for her collection Krauncha Pakshigalu.