Katha Prize Stories: 6

Anil Vyas is a well-known figure in the Gujarati literary scene. His short stories have appeared in various Gujarati magazines. He works as an Information Education and Communication Officer at the District Panchayat, Ahmedabad.

A novelist and short story writer, Dhruba Hazarika is undoubtedly a pioneering writer of Indian writing in English from the North East. His short stories have been published in various newspapers including The Sentinel and The Telegraph. He is the founder-secretary of the North East Writers’ Forum established in 1997. Two of his novels– A Bowstring Winter (2006) and Sons of Brahma (2014) – and a collection of short stories, Luck (2009), have been published by Penguin India. He was honoured with the All India Katha Award for Creative Fiction in 1996 and the DY365 Award for Literature in 2014. Previously as a member of the Assam Civil Service, he has had experience in the sectors of Tourism, Sports & Youth Welfare, Environment & Forests. He went in for voluntary retirement to devote more time to his abiding passions, reading and writing. He is an avid trekking and martial arts enthusiast.

Irathina Karikalan was born in a village called Marungur in Tamil Nadu. With some companions he pioneered a literary movement called Kaalam which publishes a literary, art and cultural magazine Kaalamputhithu and is a member of the magazine's editorial board. He has published two collections of poetry, Puhaippada Manithargal and Appothirundha Edaivelliyil. He writes mainly about the marginalized classes and in the language spoken by them.

Jayant Kumar Chakravarty started his literary career as an essayist then tried his hand at translation, to finally become a short story writer. He publishes Damal, a bimonthly magazine, on behalf of Damal Gosthi.

Mohinder Singh Sarna was born in Rawalpindi and came to Delhi in 1947 as a refugee. He has authored several short story collections, novels, and books of epic poetry. He has received many awards, including the Sahitya Akademi Award and the Shiromani Sahityakar Award.

N S Madhavan is an Indian writer of Malayalam literature.

P Lankesh was a Kannada poet, writer, translator and journalist. He was also an award-winning filmmaker.

P Valsala is a Malayalam novelist, short story writer and social activist. She is a recipient of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for her novel Nizhalurangunna Vazhikal and has also served as the chairperson of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi.

Priya Vijay Tendulkar was an actress, writer and social activist.

Pudhuvai Rã Rajani’s first book Theevugalin Sandhippu was published in 1994. His writings aim to highlight poverty as an integral part of our society.

Rawindra Pinge, a graduate from Bombay University, has worked as a producer of Marathi literary programmes for All India Radio, Bombay. He has to his credit over twenty-three books, which include novels, short stories, essays, travelogues and pen-portraits of eminent personalities.

Shaukat Hayat is a post-modern writer in Hindi and Urdu. He is renowned for his story "Gumbad Ke Kabutar".

Vishnu Nagar has to his credit volumes of poetry, collections of short fiction, satirical writings and essays. He has been a journalist for much of his career and has also been involved in editing books.

Yashodhara Mishra is an eminent Oriya writer, poet and novelist. She is also a professor of English and was a Fellow at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study.