Konkani is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Konkani people, primarily in the Konkan region, along the western coast of India. It is one of the 22 scheduled languages mentioned in the Indian Constitution, and the official language of the Indian state of Goa. It is also spoken in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Kerala, Gujarat as well as Damaon, Diu & Silvassa.
The Jnanpith Award is the oldest and the highest Indian literary award presented annually by the Bharatiya Jnanpith to an author for their "outstanding contribution towards literature". Instituted in 1961, the award is bestowed only on Indian writers writing in Indian languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India and English, with no posthumous conferral.
Waman Raghunath Shennoi Varde Valaulikar, popularly known as Shenoi Goembab, was a Konkani writer and activist.
Balakrishna Bhagwant Borkar was a poet from Goa, India.
Ravindra Kelekar was a noted Indian author who wrote primarily in the Konkani language, though he also wrote in Marathi and Hindi. A Gandhian activist, freedom fighter and a pioneer in the modern Konkani movement, he was a well known Konkani scholar, linguist, and creative thinker. Kelekar was a participant in the Indian freedom movement, Goa's liberation movement, and later the campaign against the merger of the newly formed Goa with Maharashtra. He played a key role in the founding of the Konkani Bhasha Mandal, which lead the literary campaign for the recognition of Konkani as a full-fledged language, and its reinstatement as the state language of Goa. He authored nearly 100 books in the Konkani language, including Amchi Bhas Konkaneech, Shalent Konkani Kityak, Bahu-bhashik Bharatant Bhashenche Samajshastra and Himalayant, and also edited Jaag magazine for more than two decades.
Uday Laxmikant Bhembre is an Indian lawyer, Konkani writer and former member of the Goa, Daman and Diu Legislative Assembly. He is noted for his role as the editor of the Konkani daily, Sunaparant, and as a Konkani language activist. Bhembre is also widely known as the lyricist of the famed Goan Konkani language song Channeache Rati.
Nilmani Phookan was an Indian poet in the Assamese language and an academic. His work, replete with symbolism, is inspired by French symbolism and is representative of the genre in Assamese poetry. His notable works include Surya Henu Nami Ahe Ei Nodiyedi, Gulapi Jamur Lagna, and Kobita.
Konkani in the Roman script, commonly known as Roman Konkani or Romi Konknni refers to the writing of the Konkani language in the Roman script. While Konkani is written in five different scripts altogether, Roman Konkani is widely used. Roman Konkani is known to be the oldest preserved and protected literary tradition beginning from the 16th century AD.
Manohar Rai Sardesai was a Konkani poet, writer and French translator from Goa, India. He received his Doctorat ès lettres françaises for his thesis "L'image de l'Inde en France" from the University of Sorbonne. He has been credited for an upsurge of modern Konkani poetry. Sardesai died in 2006.
Pundalik Narayan Naik is an Indian Konkani-language poet, short-story writer, novelist, playwright, and screenwriter from Goa. He has 40 books and two films to his credit.
The Dalgado Konknni Akademi is an organisation located in Panjim, Goa that works for the development and promotion of Konkani in the Roman script.
Konkani literature is literature in the Konkani language, mostly produced in three scripts: Roman, Devanagari and Kannada. Konkani literature is eligible for the Sahitya Akademi Award.
Jayanti Naik from Amona in the Quepem taluka of Goa, is a Konkani writer and folklore researcher from Goa. She is a short story writer, dramatist, children's writer, folklorist, translator and was the first person to earn a doctorate from the Goa University's Department of Konkani. She is also a Sahitya Akademi award winner. In her career of some three decades, she has produced on average, a book a year.
Mahabaleshwar Sail is an Indian author. He has been honoured with the Saraswati Samman, 2016 for his novel 'Hawthan' (हावटण).
Madhav Borkar is a noted Konkani poet, former station director of All India Radio and Konkani litterateur based in Goa, India.
Prashanti Talpankar is a writer, translator, playwright and actor, hailing from the coastal state of Goa, India. She is also a recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Award for Translation. She currently serves as an associate professor at Dnyanprassark Mandal's college and Research Centre, Assagao.
Paresh Narendra Kamat is an Indian Konkani poet from Marcaim, Goa.
John Claro Fernandes, known professionally as John Claro, is an Indian writer, theatre director, playwright, and actor. Throughout his extensive career, he has made crucial contributions to the development and advancement of Goan tiatr. His noted research on the history of tiatr led to the discovery that the inaugural tiatr production, titled Italian Bhurgo, took place on 17 April 1892, at the New Alfred Theatre in Bombay, presently occupied by the Police Commissioner headquarters.
