Sugathakumari was an Indian poet and activist, who was at the forefront of environmental and feminist movements in Kerala, South India. Her parents were the poet and freedom fighter Bodheswaran and V. K. Karthiyayini Amma, a Sanskrit scholar. She was the founder secretary of the Prakrithi Samrakshana Samithi, an organisation for the protection of nature, and of Abhaya, a home for destitute women and a day-care centre for the mentally ill. She chaired the Kerala State Women's Commission. She played a prominent role in the Save Silent Valley protest.
Dr. 'Ampasayya' Naveen is a Telugu novelist. He is an Osmania University alumni, and his college life at OU inspired his first novel, Ampasayya. His novel Kala Rekhalu won the Sahitya Academy Award in 2004.
Telugu theatre is Indian theatre in the Telugu language, based in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Gurajada Apparao wrote the play, Kanyasulkam in 1892, which is often considered the greatest play in the Telugu language. C. Pullaiah is cited as the father of Telugu theatre movement.
Nayani Krishnakumari was an Indian scholar, poet, researcher, speaker in Telugu and an active participant in literary and cultural organizations. She served several institutions in various capacities. She received several awards such as Swarnakankanam, instituted by Desoddharaka Kasinathuni Nageswara Rao, Best Telugu Writer award from Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University, and Sahitya Akademi among others.
Mahe Jabeen is an Indian poet, lawyer and minority rights activist, and a winner of the Rajiv Gandhi Manav Seva award for her social service.
K. R. Meera is an Indian author and journalist, who writes in Malayalam. She was born in Sasthamkotta, Kollam district in Kerala. She worked as a journalist in Malayala Manorama but later resigned to concentrate more on writing. She started writing fiction in 2001 and her first short story collection Ormayude Njarambu was published in 2002. Since then she has published five collections of short stories, two novellas, five novels and two children's books. She won the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award in 2009 for her short-story, Ave Maria. Her novel Aarachaar (2012) is widely regarded as one of the best literary works produced in Malayalam language. It received several awards including the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award (2013), Odakkuzhal Award (2013), Vayalar Award (2014) and Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award (2015). It was also shortlisted for the 2016 DSC Prize for South Asian Literature.
Jandhyala Papayya Sastry was an eminent Telugu writer and lyricist. He was popularly known as Karunasri because his writings expressively show compassion, one of the nine Rasas. His famous kavyas include Pushpa Vilapam and Kunthi Kumari.
Potturi Vijayalakshmi is a Telugu writer well known for her humorous short stories.
Varsha Mahendra Adalja is an Indian Gujarati language feminist novelist, playwright and negotiator who won the 1995 Sahitya Akademi Award for Gujarati language for her novel Ansar. She is also a dramatist, writing for stage plays, screenplays, and radio.
P. Ananda Kumar is an Indian plant molecular biologist and biotechnologist.
Bhamidipati Ramagopalam (1932–2010), also known as Bharago, was a writer of short stories, critiques and novels in Telugu. He received the Central Sahitya Academy Award in 1991 for the book Itlu mee vidheyudu.
Kolakaluri Enoch is an Indian writer, teacher, and former Vice Chancellor of Sri Venkateswara University, Tirupati. He was honoured by the Government of India, in 2014, by bestowing on him the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award, for his contributions to the field of literature.
Kundanika Kapadia was an Indian novelist, story writer and essayist from Gujarat.
Turaga Janaki Rani was an Indian broadcaster, social activist and a writer worked with All India Radio for two decades. Popularly known as Radio Akkayya.
Dr. Papineni Sivasankar, a doyen of Modern Literature in Telugu, recipient of Sahitya Akademi Award, 2016 is an Indian poet, short story writer, and critic.
Illindala Saraswati Devi (1918–1998) was a Telugu novelist, short story writer, biographer, essayist and social worker from Andhra Pradesh, India. She received the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1982 for her short story collection, Swarnakamalalu.
Binapani Mohanty was an Indian Odia language writer and academician. She was well known for her works such as Patadei and Kasturi Mriga. She was a professor in economics before retiring. She had been awarded Padmashree by the Government of India and Atibadi Jagannatha Das Sammana by Odisha Sahitya Akademi. She had earlier won the Sahitya Akademi Award and Sarala Award. She had served as chairperson of Odisha Lekhika Sansad.
Shaik Khaja Hassan, popularly known by his pen name Devi Priya, was an Indian Telugu-language poet and journalist known for his political satire. He was a recipient of the 2017 Sahitya Akademi Award for his work Gaali Rangu. Some of his famous works included Adhyakshaa Mannichandi, Gareebi Geetaalu, and Amma Chettu Chepa Chiluka.
Ketavarapu Katyayani, best known by her pen name Katyayani Vidmahe, is an Indian writer and academic. Her work focuses on Telugu literature, particularly feminist and Marxist writing.
Nidadavolu Malathi is a Telugu writer from Andhra Pradesh, India. She is a short story writer, essayist, literary critic, and translator. Her daughter Sarayu Rao is a Hollywood actress.
