K. Satchidanandan (1946) is an Indian poet and critic, writing in Malayalam and English. A pioneer of modern poetry in Malayalam, a bilingual literary critic, playwright, editor, columnist and translator, he is the former Editor of Indian Literature journal and the former Secretary of Sahitya Akademi. He is also social advocate for secular anti-caste views, supporting causes like environment, human rights and free software and is a well known speaker on issues concerning contemporary Indian literature. He is the festival director of Kerala Literature Festival.
Sunil Gangopadhyay or Sunil Ganguly was an Indian poet, historian and novelist in the Bengali language based in the city of Kolkata. He is a former Sheriff of Calcutta. Gangopadhyay obtained his master's degree in Bengali from the University of Calcutta. In 1953 he and a few of his friends started a Bengali poetry magazine, Krittibas. Later he wrote for many different publications.
Indian poetry and Indian literature in general, has a long history dating back to Vedic times. They were written in various Indian languages such as Vedic Sanskrit, Classical Sanskrit, Tamil, Odia, Maithili, Telugu, Kannada, Bengali, Assamese, Urdu, and Hindi. Poetry in foreign languages such as Persian and English also has a strong influence on Indian poetry. The poetry reflects diverse spiritual traditions within India. In particular, many Indian poets have been inspired by mystical experiences. Poetry is the oldest form of literature and has a rich written and oral tradition.
Binoy Majumdar was a Bengali poet. Binoy received the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2005.
Bengali literature denotes the body of writings in the Bengali language. Bengali has developed over the course of roughly 1,300 years. The earliest extant work in Bengali literature is the Charyapada, a collection of Buddhist mystic songs dating back to the 10th and 11th centuries, and considered to be written in an ancestor language of Bengali, Assamese, Odia and many other languages belonging to the Eastern branch of the Indo-Aryan languages. The timeline of Bengali literature is divided into three periods − ancient (650-1200), medieval (1200-1800) and modern. Medieval Bengali literature consists of various poetic genres, including Hindu religious scriptures, Islamic epics, Vaishnava texts, translations of Arabic, Persian and Sanskrit texts, and secular texts by Muslim poets. Novels were introduced in the mid-19th century. Other than the Eastern Nagari script, Bengali has been written with different scripts such as the Perso-Arabic and Sylheti Nagri in certain parts of history. Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore was the best known figure of Bengali literature to the world. Kazi Nazrul Islam, notable for his activism and anti-British literature, was described as the Rebel Poet and is now recognised as the National poet of Bangladesh.
Annada Shankar Ray was an Indian poet and essayist in Bengali. He also wrote some Odia poetry.
Rizia Rahman was a Bangladeshi novelist. She had a number of novels and short stories to her credit. Her works cut across all genres. She was best known for the novel Bong Theke Bangla. She was the recipient of Bangla Academy Literary Award (1978). As of 2018, she had published more than 50 novels and short story collections during her long career.
The Rabindra Puraskar or the Rabindra Smriti Puraskar is the highest honorary literary award given in the Indian state of West Bengal. This award is named after the famous Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore and is administered by the Government of West Bengal under the aegis of the Paschimbanga Bangla Academy, Kolkata.The award is given for creative literature, non-fiction and books about Bengal in Bengali as well as other languages.
Subhash Mukhopadhyay was one of the foremost Indian Bengali poets of the 20th century. He is also known as the "podatik kobi" in the field of Bengali literature. A book of thirty of Subhash's best known poems in English translation, titled ' As Day is Breaking', was published in 2014 by Anjan Basu, a Bangalore-based writer/critic. The book includes a rather detailed introduction to the poet's work as well. He was honoured with Jnanpith Award in 1991.
Yashodhara Ray Chaudhuri is a poet residing in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. She produced collections of Bengali poetry. She was awarded the Krittibas Puraskar in 1998 by the Krittibas Patrika.
Syed Mustafa Siraj was an eminent Indian writer. In 1994, he received the Sahitya Akademi Award for his novel Mythical Man, considered his most lauded work. In 2005, his short story "Ranirghater Brittanto" was made into the film Faltu by Anjan Das. He wrote around 150 novels and 300 short stories. He is the creator of the detective character Colonel Niladri Sarkar a.k.a. "Goenda Colonel", the Detective Colonel.
Ghulam Murshid is a Bangladeshi author, scholar and journalist, based in London. He won a number of honors and awards, including Bangla Academy Literary Award in 1982 for his contribution to research.; Prothom Alo Book Award in 2007; IFIC literary prize 2018; the Ekusey Padak for language and literature in 2021 and the Vidyasagar Endowments Lectures 1973 at Calcutta University. Besides being a prolific author, Dr. Murshid is a distinguished lexicographer. He edited a three-volume Bengali dictionary, called 'Bibartonmulak Bangla Abhidhan', published in 2013-2014, by the Bangla Academy. In the two hundred year's of history of Bengali dictionaries, it is the first to be based on historical principles. It provides the evolution of the form and meaning of every word and traces the first use thereof in written Bengali.
Bimal Guha is a Bangladeshi poet, and a leading poet of his generation. He appeared on the Bangladesh literary scene in the 1970s. His themes revolve around the war of liberation and the eternal subjects of love, nature, motherland, mother-tongue, tradition, and modernity.
Sankari Prasad Basu was an Indian scholar, writer and critic who writes mainly in the Bengali language. He is a researcher on Swami Vivekananda and his books on the subject include Sahashya Vivekananda and Bandhu Vivekananda. One of his notable publications is his seven-volume research work Vivekananda o Samakalin Bharatbarsha, for which he won the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award in 1978.
Utpal Kumar Basu was a Bengali poet and story teller.
Anita Agnihotri is an Indian Bengali writer and poet. She has been translated into major Indian and foreign languages, including but not limited to English, Swedish and German. She is also a retired civil servant. She lives in India.
Arup Chandra, born in 1951 in Murshidabad district in the state of West Bengal, is a writer, poet, essayist, art critic, and an educator. He is the writer of more than fourteen books, and has edited twelve others. Two of his books are translated into English and published. His research speciality is the history, poetry, art, culture and literature of Murshidabad District.
Bijoy Sankar Barman is an Indian poet, writer and translator who writes in Assamese language. He has been awarded with Yuva Puraskar by Sahitya Akademi
Ramapada Chowdhury was an Indian novelist and short story writer in Bengali. For his novel Bari Badle Jay, he received the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1988. He was also a recipient of the Rabindra Puraskar and several other awards. He won the Rabindranath Tagore Memorial International Prize in its inaugural year. Many of his works have been adapted into films, including the multiple-award-winning Kharij, directed by Mrinal Sen, and Ek Doctor Ki Maut, directed by Tapan Sinha. Chowdhury started writing during the Second World War. He was associated with Anandabazar Patrika for many years, and edited its Sunday supplement. His novels are marked by an economy of expression. He is one of the most well known short story writers in contemporary Bengali literature.
Krishna Dhar, born 1 February, 1928 is an Indian poet, playwright, writer, journalist, columnist and teacher. He has been writing poetry alongside verse drama, nonfictional prose of varied nature and journalistic columns since the mid 1940s.