List of Indian women writers

This is a list of women writers who were born in India or whose writings are closely associated with that nation.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

A

• Arundhati Roy (born 1961), Indian author best known for her novel The God of Small Things (1997), which won the Booker Prize for Fiction in 1997 and became the best-selling book by a non-expatriate Indian author
• Varsha Adalja (born 1940), Gujarati novelist, playwright
• Smita Agarwal (born 1958), poet, educator
• Vinita Agrawal (born 1965), poet, editor
• Sheetal Agashe (born 1977), poet, essayist, businesswoman ^[1]
• Meena Alexander (1951–2018), poet, memoirist, essayist, novelist, critic, educator
• Samina Ali, contemporary Indian-American novelist, feminist, author of Madras on Rainy Days
• Balamani Amma (1909–2004), poet, published many collections of poetry in Malayalam
• K. Saraswathi Amma (1919–1975), short story writer, novelist, feminist
• Lalithambika Antharjanam (1909–1987), Malayalam short story writer, poet, children's writer, novelist, author of Agnisakshi
• Temsula Ao (born 1945), short story writer, poet, educator
• Ashitha, since c.1986: Malayalam short story writer, poet

B

• Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain (1880-1932), the first woman Muslim writer from colonial Bengal.
• Jasodhara Bagchi (1937–2015), leading feminist critic, essayist, activist
• Anuttama Banerjee, psychologist, poet, author, and public health advocate
• Sushmita Banerjee (c.1963–2013), memoirist
• Rashmi Bansal (born 1985), non-fiction best-seller writer on entrepreneurship
• Bani Basu (born 1939), Bengali novelist, essayist, critic, poet
• Barkha Dutt (born 1971), TV journalist
• Malati Bedekar (1905–2001), Marathi feminist writer, short story writer, screenwriter
• Sheila Bhatia (1916–2008), poet, playwright, theatre director
• Sujata Bhatt (born 1956), Gujarati poet, also writing in English
• Rajlukshmee Debee Bhattacharya, since the 1990s: poet in Bengali and English
• Suchitra Bhattacharya (1950–2015), Bengali novelist, short story writer
• Nirmal Prabha Bordoloi (1933–2003), Assamese poet, lyricist, children's writer
• Urvashi Butalia (born 1952), feminist, publisher, non-fiction writer

C

• Neelam Saxena Chandra (born 1969), poet, children's writer, novelist
• Chandramathi (born 1954), novelist writing in Malayalam and English
• Rimi B. Chatterjee (born 1969), novelist, short story writer, non-fiction writer, translator
• Jayasri Chattopadhyay (born 1945), Sanskrit poet, educator
• Anuja Chauhan (born 1970), advertiser, novelist, author of The Zoya Factor
• Subhadra Kumari Chauhan (1904–1948), Hindi poet
• Prem Chowdhry (born 1944), social scientist, feminist, non-fiction writer, essayist
• Rita Chowdhury (born 1960), poet, novelist, educator
• Raghavan Chudamani (1931–2010), novelist, short story writer, writing in Tamil and English
• Ismat Chughtai (1915–1991), Urdu novelist, screenwriter
• Ajit Cour (born 1934), Punjabi novelist, short story writer
• C. S. Chandrika (born 1967), novelist, short story writer, essayist in Malayalam

D

• Esha Dadawala (born 1985), Gujarati poet, journalist
• Sukanya Datta (born 1961), scientist and science fiction writer
• Anupreeta Das, journalist and author
• Abha Dawesar (born 1974), novelist, short story writer, author of Babyji
• Shobha De (born 1947), journalist, novelist
• Eunice de Souza (born 1940–2017), English-language poet, critic, novelist
• Pitambari Debi (1904–?), writer of Odia literature
• Anita Desai (born 1937), novelist, author of In Custody
• Kamal Desai (1928–c.2011), novelist, writing in Marathi
• Kiran Desai (born 1971), novelist, author of The Inheritance of Loss
• Dhanashree Deshpande-Ganatra (born 1970), poet, singer, and music producer
• Gauri Deshpande (1942–2003), novelist, short story writer, poet, wrote in Marathi and English
• Shashi Deshpande (born 1938), novelist, short story writer, children's writer
• Sunita Deshpande (1926–2009), Marathi memoirist, letter writer
• Nabaneeta Dev Sen (1938–2019), poet, novelist, educator
• Ashapoorna Devi (1909–1995), Bengali novelist, poet
• Leela Devi (1932–1998), novelist, non-fiction writer, playwright, translator, writing in Malayalam and English
• Mahasweta Devi (1926–2016), Bengali-Indian journalist, novelist
• Maitreyi Devi (1914–1989), Bengali poet, novelist
• M. K. Binodini Devi (1922–2011), Manipuri memoirist, essayist, short story writer, novelist
• Nalini Bala Devi (1898–1977), Assamese poet
• Nirupama Devi (1883–1951), novelist
• Sneha Devi (1916–1990), writer of Assamese literature
• Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (born 1956), Indian-American poet, novelist, short story writer, author of The Mistress of Spices
• Varsha Dixit, novelist
• Nirupama Dutt (born 1955), Punjabi poet, journalist, translator
• Toru Dutt (1856–1877), poet, novelist, writing in English and French

E

• Bondina Elangbam, writer, poet and artist

G

• Gangadevi (14th century), Telugu princess, poet, author of Madura Vijayam
• Mridula Garg (born 1938), novelist, short story writer, playwright, essayist, writing in Hindi and English
• Sagarika Ghose (born 1964), journalist, TV presenter, novelist
• Namita Gokhale (born 1956), English-language novelist, short story writer
• Padma Gole (1913–1998), Marathi poet
• Ellen Lakshmi Goreh (1853–1937), poet, Christian missionary, deaconess and nurse
• Nirmala Govindarajan, English-language novelist, journalist
• Mamoni Raisom Goswami (1942–2011), Assamese poet, novelist, short story writer, editor, educator
• Santhini Govindan (born 1959), children's writer
• Kodagina Gowramma, pen name of B. T. Gopal Krishna (1912–1939), short story writer, feminist
• Teji Grover (born 1955), poet, novelist, translator, painter
• Neelum Saran Gour (born 1955), writer, academic
• Ganga Bharani Vasudevan (born 1990), novelist, script writer

H

• Baby Halder (born 1973), domestic servant, autobiographer
• Githa Hariharan (born 1954), novelist
• Chandrakala A. Hate (1903–1990), feminist writer, educator
• Nistula Hebbar (born 1975), journalist, columnist, novelist
• Vera Hingorani (1924–2018), gynaecologist, medical writer
• Saliha Abid Hussain, 20th-century Urdu-language novelist, children's writer
• Krishna Hutheesing (1907–1967), biographer, non-fiction writer

I

• M. K. Indira (1917–1994), Kannada novelist
• Ismat Chugtai (1915-1991),Indian Urdu novelist, short story writer, liberal humanist and filmmaker

J

• Manorama Jafa (born 1932), prolific children's writer
• Rashid Jahan (1905–1952), Urdi short story writer, playwright
• Jana Begum (17th century), early female writer of a commentary on the Qur'an
• Pupul Jayakar (1915–1997), biographer, non-fiction writer on handicrafts
• Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (1927–2013), acclaimed German-born British novelist, short story writer, screenwriter, grew up in India
• Sarah Joseph (born 1946), Malayalam novelist, short story writer, author of Aalahayude Penmakkal
• Isha Basant Joshi (born 1908, date of death unknown), poet, short story writer
• Anees Jung (born 1944), journalist, columnist, non-fiction writer
• Kirthi Jayakumar (born 1987), author, non-fiction writer, women's rights activist, feminist
• Jyoti Arora (born 1977) Blogger, novelist

K

• Madhur Kapila (1942–2021), writer, journalist, art critic
• Shakuntala Karandikar (1931–2018), biographer, essayist and philanthropist
• Meena Kandasamy (born 1984), poet, biographer, novelist, feminist
• Amita Kanekar (born 1965), novelist, educator
• Kanhopatra (15th century), Marathi saint-poet
• Kota Neelima, writer, journalist, artist
• Lakshmi Kannan (born 1947), Tamil poet and novelist, translates her works into English
• Bhanu Kapil (born 1968), British-Indian novelist
• Manju Kapur, since 1998: novelist
• Swati Kaushal, since 2005: young adult novelist
• Girijabai Kelkar (1886–1890), Marathi-language playwright, feminist writer
• Sumana Kittur (active since 2007), journalist, film director, lyricist
• Habba Khatoon (1554–1609), Kashmiri mystic poet
• Mridula Koshy (born 1969), short story writer, novelist
• Sumati Kshetramade (1913–1997), novelist
• Rajam Krishnan (1925–2014), Tamil novelist, playwright, short story writer, feminist
• Priya Kumar (born 1974), novelist
• Twinkle Khanna (born 1973), author, columnist

L

• Jhumpa Lahiri (born 1967), British-born American-Indian short story writer, novelist, author of The Lowland
• Lalleshwari (1320–1392), Kashmiri mystic poet
• Bem Le Hunte (born 1964), British-Indian novelist, now in Australia
• Lalitha Lenin (born 1946), acclaimed Malayalam poet, educator
• Ritu Lalit (born 1964), Indian novelist

Monica Lakhmana, Indian history writer, author of “Women In Pre & Post Independent India 75 Victories Visionaries Voices

M

• Akka Mahadevi (12th century), poet writing in Old Kannada
• Megha Majumdar, novelist, A Burning
• Tilottama Majumdar (born 1966), Bengali novelist, short story writer, poet, essayist
• Anju Makhija, since 1990, poet, playwright, translator
• Amita Malik (1921–2009), film and television critic, radio journalist
• Kiran Manral (born 1971), novelist, blogger, non-fiction writer
• Kamala Markandaya, pen name of Kamala Purnaiya Taylor (1924–2004), best selling novelist, journalist
• C K Meena (born 1957), novelist, journalist, educator
• Meera (15th century), Hindu mystic poet
• K. R. Meera (born 1970), journalist, novelist, short story writer, children's writer
• Rama Mehta (1923–1978), sociologist, novelist, non-fiction writer
• Indu Menon (born 1980), Malayalam novelist, short story writer, screenwriter, sociologist
• Jaishree Misra (born 1961), best-selling novelist
• Baisali Mohanty (born 1994), author, columnist, non-fiction writer
• Molla (1440–1530), poet, translated the Ramayana into Telugu
• Muddupalani (18th century), Telugu poet
• Chitra Mudgal (born 1944), Hindi novelist
• Bharati Mukherjee (1940–2017), Indian-American novelist, short story writer, non-fiction writer, author of Jasmine
• Khadija Mumtaz (born 1955), medical doctor, novelist, author of Barsa (novel)
• Sudha Murthy (born 1950), Kannada novelist, short story writer, children's writer, sociologist, businesswomen
• Seema Mustafa, since 1990s, journalist, biographer, newspaper editor
• Meher Pestonji, (born 1946), freelance journalist, author

N

• Sarojini Naidu (1879–1949), child prodigy, Indian independence activist, poet
• Anita Nair (born 1966), English-language poet, novelist, author of Ladies Coupé
• Nalini Priyadarshni (born 1974), poet, writer, critic
• Suniti Namjoshi (born 1941), poet, short story writer, children's writer
• Meera Nanda (born 1954), Indian-American historian, religious writer
• Anupama Niranjana (1934–1991), medical doctor, Kannada novelist, short story writer

P

• Manjula Padmanabhan (born 1953), playwright, journalist, comic strip artist, children's writer
• Mrinal Pande (born 1946), television presenter, journalist, novelist, non-fiction writer, newspaper editor
• Meghna Pant (born 1980), award-winning novelist, non-fiction writer, journalist, feminist, columnist, speaker
• Rashmi Parekh (born 1976), poet, computer scientist
• Dhiruben Patel (born 1926), Gujarati novelist, short story writer, playwright, translator
• Savitribai Phule (1831–1897), poet, social reformer
• Gita Piramal (born c. 1954), magazine editor, businesswoman, non-fiction writer
• Gudibande Poornima (born 1951), poet, novelist, non-fiction writer
• Manjiri Prabhu (born 1964), novelist, filmmaker
• Manasi Pradhan (born 1962), novelist, women's rights activist
• Amrita Pritam (1919–2005), poet, novelist, essayist, first prominent Punjabi woman poet
• Neelkamal Puri (born 1956), Punjabi novelist, short story writer, columnist, educator
• Deanne Pandey (born 1968), fitness and lifestyle writer

R

• Rajalakshmi (1930–1965), Malayalam poet, novelist
• Rajashree, author of the chick lit best seller Trust Me (2006)
• Anuradha Ramanan (1947–2010), prolific novelist, short story writer
• Ravinder Randhawa (born 1952), British-Indian novelist, short story writer
• Bhargavi Rao (1944–2008), specialist in Telugu literature, translator, anthologist
• Malathi Rao (born 1930), novelist, short story writer
• Usha Rao-Monari (born 1959), economist and non-fiction writer
• Santha Rama Rau (1923–2009), Indian-American novelist, playwright
• Rashid-un-Nisa (1855 – 1929), the first Indian women Urdu novelist, known for her first Novel Islah un Nisa.
• Nuchhungi Renthlei (1914–2002), poet, singer, school teacher, women's rights activist
• Anusree Roy (born 1982), Indo-Canadian playwright, actress
• Anuradha Roy (born 1967), novelist
• Arundhati Roy (born 1961), novelist, author of The God of Small Things
• Nilanjana S. Roy (born c. 1971), journalist, children's writer
• Kamini Roy (1864–1933), leading Bengali poet, essayist, feminist
• Sumana Roy, Indian poet, novelist, short story writer
• Rita Kothari, Author, Professor, Translation Studies and Partition http://www.iitgn.ac.in/faculty/humanities/rita.htm

S

• Padma Sachdev (1940–2021), Dogri poet, novelist, also writing in Hindi
• Nayantara Sahgal (born 1927), novelist, memoirist, letter writer, author of Rich Like Us
• Sarojini Sahoo (born 1956), feminist writer, novelist, short-story writer, author of Sensible Sensuality
• Nandini Sahu (born 1973), English-language poet, folklorist, academic
• Indira Sant (1914–2000), Marathi poet
• Krupabai Satthianadhan (1862–1894), early English-language Indian novelist
• Mala Sen (1947–2011), writer and human rights activist, author of India's Bandit Queen
• Mallika Sengupta (1960–2011), Bengali poet, novelist, feminist, sociologist
• Poile Sengupta (born 1948), English-language playwright, children's writer, poet
• Teesta Setalvad (born 1962), journalist, civil rights activist
• Madhuri R. Shah (fl. 1970-80s), educationist, non-fiction writer
• Shantichitra (born 1978), novelist, short story writer, educator
• Sarjana Sharma (born 1959), journalist, broadcaster
• Shanta Shelke (1922–2002), Marathi poet, novelist, short story writer, educator
• Preeti Shenoy (born 1971), novelist, non-fiction writer
• Melanie Silgardo (born 1956), poet
• Chandramani Singh (1940–2022), art historian and writer
• Sunny Singh (born 1969), journalist, novelist, short story writer
• Sunny Singh (1931–1999), Bengali poet, novelist, feminist
• Kabita Sinha (1931–1999), Bengali poet, novelist, feminist
• Mridula Sinha (1942–2020), state governor of Goa, Hindi novelist, short story writer
• Shumona Sinha (born 1973), Indian born French writer, novelist, feminist
• Sivasankari (born 1942), Tamil novelist
• Krishna Sobti (1925–2019), Hindi novelist, essayist
• Atima Srivastava (born 1961), short story writer, novelist, screenwriter, film director
• Arundhathi Subramaniam, since c.2003: poet, journalist, biographer
• Vidya Subramaniam (born 1957), prolific novelist, short story writer
• Sugathakumari (1934–2020), Malayalam poet, activist
• Kamala Surayya (1934–2009), English-language poet, Malayalam short story writer, columnist, autobiographer
• Sunita Jain (1940–2017), English and Hindi fictionist

T

• Shweta Taneja (born 1980), novelist, comic writer, journalist
• Sooni Taraporevala (born 1957), screenwriter, photographer
• Romila Thapar (born 1930), historian, non-fiction writer
• Susie Tharu (born 1943), non-fiction writer, educator, women's rights activist
• Manjit Tiwana (born 1947), Punjabi poet, educator
• Madhu Trehan, since mid 1970s, journalist, magazine editor
• Ira Trivedi, since 2006, non-fiction writer, novelist, columnist
• Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari (born 1979), author, filmmaker

U

• Krishna Udayasankar, Singapore-based Indian author
• O. V. Usha (born 1948), Malayalam poet, novelist, short story writer

V

• Urvashi Vaid (born 1958), Indian-American LGBT activist, non-fiction writer
• Vaidehi (born 1945), acclaimed Kannada short story writer, essayist, novelist, poet, children's writer
• Aparna Vaidik (born 1975), historian
• P. Valsala (born 1938), novelist, short story writer, social activist
• Mahadevi Varma (1907–1987), Hindi poet, women's rights activist
• Kapila Vatsyayan (1928–2020), art historian, non-fiction writer
• Reetika Vazirani (1962–2003), Indian-American poet, educator
• Kaajal Oza Vaidya (born 1966), screenwriter, novelist, journalist
• Vijayalakshmi (born 1960), prolific Malayalam poet
• Sharifa Vijaliwala, (born 1962), Indian writer and translator
• Pinki Virani (born 1959), journalist, best-selling novelist, non-fiction writer
• Susan Visvanathan (born 1957), sociologist, non-fiction writer, novelist, essayist
• Vrinda Singh, novelist writing on themes related to women

Y

• Mallika Yunis, since 1980s, novelist

Z

• Shama Zaidi (born 1938), art critic, screenwriter, filmmaker
• Zahida Zaidi (1930–2011), poet, playwright, critic, educator
• Zeenuth Futehally (1904-1992), author, feminist, novelist

See also

• List of women writers

References

1. Sathe-Patwardhan, Radhika (2019). "The Boss Lady: Sheetal Agashe, MD, Brihans Natural Products". In Chaitanya, Tanya (ed.). Femina presents Pune's Most Powerful 2018-19 (Coffee table book). Mumbai: Worldwide Media. pp. 64–65. RNI 6253/59.