Kota Shivaram Karanth, also abbreviated as K. Shivaram Karanth, was an Indian polymath, who was a novelist in Kannada language, playwright and an ecological conservationist. Ramachandra Guha called him the "Rabindranath Tagore of Modern India, who has been one of the finest novelists-activists since independence". He was the third writer to be decorated with the Jnanpith Award for Kannada, the highest literary honor conferred in India. His son Ullas is an ecological conservationist.
Akkihebbalu Narasimha Murthy Rao was an Indian writer. He wrote in Kannada.
Kuppali Puttappa Poornachandra Tejaswi was a prominent Indian writer and novelist in Kannada. He also worked as a photographer, publisher, painter, naturalist, and environmentalist. He made a great impression in the Navya ("new") period of Kannada literature and inaugurated the Bandaaya Saahitya genre of protest literature with his short-story collection Abachoorina Post Offisu. He is the son of noted Kannada poet Kuvempu.
Arakalagudu Narasingarao Krishna Rao, popularly known as Anakru, was an Indian writer. He is one of the best-known writers in the Kannada-language and was popularly known as Kadambari Sarvabhouma. The inception of the Pragatishila ("progressive") movement in Kannada literature is credited to him. He received an honorary doctorate from the Mysore University and is also a recipient of the Karnataka Sahitya Academy Award.
Ambale Ramakrishna Krishnashastry (1890–1968) was an Indian writer, researcher and translator in the Kannada language. Krishnashastry has remained popular four decades after his death through his work Vachana Bharata, and his narration of the Hindu epic Mahabharata in the Kannada.
Anantharamu Krishnappa(ಕೆ.ಅನಂತರಾಮು), born in Krishnaraja Nagara, Mysore District is a writer and a publisher. He has won the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award for Kannada three times for his works. He publishes his work himself under the banner "Anantha Prakashana". He also won the Karnataka Rajyotsava Award in 2004 and the Ranna Sahitya Award in 2006.
Harogadde Manappa Nayak was an academician, writer and folklorist.
Guggari Shanthaveerappa Shivarudrappa, or colloquially GSS, was an Indian Kannada poet, writer, and researcher who was awarded the title of Rashtrakavi by the Government of Karnataka in 2006.
Chandrashekhara Basavanneppa Kambara is a prominent Indian poet, playwright, folklorist, film director in Kannada language and the founder-vice-chancellor of Kannada University in Hampi also president of the Sahitya Akademi, country's premier literary institution, after Vinayak Krishna Gokak (1983) and U.R. Ananthamurthy (1993). He is known for effective adaptation of the North Karnataka dialect of the Kannada language in his plays, and poems, in a similar style as in the works of D.R. Bendre.
Vani was a Kannada writer. She was born in Srirangapatna. Her father B. Narasinga Rao was an advocate. She was bestowed the "Rajaseva Saktha" title by Nalvadi Krishna Raja Wodeyer of Mysore Palace. Three of her novels — Shubhamangala, Eradu Kanasu and Hosa Belaku — were made into successful Kannada movies directed by top Kannada directors.
Jayant Kaikini is a poet, short story writer, playwright, columnist in Kannada and a lyricist in Kannada cinema. He has so far published six anthologies of short stories, four books of poetry, three plays and a collection of essays. He is valued as one of the best writers in Kannada literature and has revolutionized the field by giving it a fresh new perspective. He has bagged many notable awards like 'Karnataka Sahitya Academy' award, Kusumagraj Award, Katha Award, DSC Prize for South Asian Literature amidst others. Kaikini is regarded as one of the most significant writers in Kannada today. Kaikini has been conferred the honorary doctorate from Tumkur University.
Kirtinath Kurtakoti was a Kannada writer and critic who won among other awards, the Central Sahitya Akademi honour of India. Apart from Kannada, he was well-versed in other languages including Hindi and Sanskrit.
Sitakant Mahapatra is an Indian poet and literary critic in Odia as well as English. He served in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) from 1961 until he retired in 1995, and has held ex officio posts such as the Chairman of National Book Trust, New Delhi since then.
Santeshivara Lingannaiah Bhyrappa is an Indian novelist, philosopher and screenwriter who writes in Kannada. His work is popular in the state of Karnataka and he is widely regarded as one of modern India's popular novelists. His novels are unique in terms of theme, structure, and characterization. He has been among the top-selling authors in the Kannada language and his books have been translated into Hindi and Marathi which have also been sellers.
Devanoora Mahadeva is an Indian writer and intellectual who writes in Kannada language. The Government of India conferred upon him the Padma Shri award, the fourth highest civilian award.
Togere Venkatasubbasastry Venkatachala Sastry, commonly known as T. V. Venkatachala Shastry, is a Kannada-language writer, grammarian, critic, editor and lexicographer. He has authored in excess of 100 books, translations and has edited collections of essays, biographical sketches and felicitation volumes. Recipient of the Kannada Sahitya Akademi Award (honorary), Sastry is an authority on Kannada language grammar and its various facets ranging from the metre scale on which he has written extensively to the history of Kannada literature spanning two millennia.
Haleyuru Srinivasa Krishnaswamy Iyengar was a Kannada columnist, essayist, novelist, critic and teacher of Economics and Commerce studies in Mysore. He is remembered for his character sketches and short essays on personalities and issues of national & international import, in his weekly column "Varada Vyakthi". These appeared in the Kannada magazine "Sudha" continuously for nearly two decades. His literary critique "Kannadadalli Vidambana Sahitya" won him the Kannada Sahitya Akademi Award in 1981. His perspective on elements of Vishistadvaita in the works of Kuvempu were brought forth in his book "Kuvempu Sahityadalli Vishistadvaita – Darshana". H. S. K. penned close to thousand character sketches over two decades. These were later published in four collected volumes. He received the "Rajyotsava Award" from Government of Karnataka in 1997. For his lifetime contribution to Journalism and Kannada literature, the University of Mysore conferred a doctorate degree on him in 2004.
Venkataramaiah Seetharamaiah commonly known as Vee See, was a Kannada poet, writer, essayist, critic, editor and teacher who taught Kannada literature at University of Mysore between 1928 and 1955. He is a recipient of the Karnataka Sahitya Akademi Award (1973), Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award and an Honorary Doctorate from University of Mysore in 1976. He presided over the 36th Kannada Sahitya Sammelana at Kumta in 1954.
Abdul Rasheed is an Indian writer, poet, editor and translator from Karnataka. In 2004 he won Sahitya Akademi Golden Jubilee Award for lifetime achievement. He also a translator, blogger, columnist and radio personality.
Taľaku Subbanna Venkannayya was University of Mysore's first Kannada Professor. He was also a popular Kannada writer, translator, editor and teacher who nurtured many later Kannada littérateurs like Kuvempu, D. L. Narasimhachar, T. N. Srikantaiah, K. S. Narasimhaswamy, M. V. Seetharamaiah, C. K. Venkataramaiah, K. Venkataramappa, G. Venkatasubbiah and S. V. Parameshwara Bhatta. In fact, Kuvempu begins his book Sri Ramayana Darshanam with a two-page dedication to his teacher T. S. Venkannayya. T. S. Venkannayya translated the biography of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa from Bengali into Kannada for the first time in 1919. T. S. Venkannayya along with D. V. Gundappa, V. Seetharamaiah, B. M. Srikantaiah and T. N. Srikantaiah were at the forefront of the Kannada Movement from 1920s onwards and were instrumental in the founding of Kannada Sahitya Parishat (Bangalore) and Kannada Sangha at Central College, Bangalore and Maharaja College, Mysore. T. S. Venkannayya was responsible for the organising of the 1931 Kannada Sahitya Sammelan at Mysore.
