From the cultural splendour of Delhi, Agra and Jaipur to the glamour of Bollywood, India is a fascinating place. It’s the second most populous country in the world and there’s no better way to learn about its diverse culture and complex history than to read about it.
India has a long and distinguished literary record. The country’s first written works date as far back as 1500BC and its oral tradition is even older than that. The first ever ancient Indian literature was Sanskrit literature comprising of Rig Veda, the Ramayana and Mahabharata which were written in first millennium BCE. Then developed, Kannada and Telugu Literature in the medieval era. They were followed by Marathi, Bengali and Urdu literature. Among the Indian literary personnel, the name of Bengali writer Rabindranath Tagore shines the brightest. He became the first Indian to receive Nobel Prize for his literary genius. There are two Indian awards for Literature – Jnanpith Award and Sahitya Fellow Academy Award.
Indian English Literature has come a long way – from just a few English books releasing a year previously to thousands of new titles launching every year now. In 2020, India’s book market is valued at an with an estimated Rs. 739 billion. India ranks second, after the US, in English language publishing with over 9000 publishers.
India has been celebrated for its art, literature and writing since ancient times. There are over twenty languages spoken in India and literature that includes over twenty of these languages. However, not only does Indians take pride in the diversity of their languages but has a great command over the English language as well. Henceforth, a wide variety of authors can be listed when it comes to Indian literature, so here’s an attempt to compress the list down to a simple number of five; the Indian authors that must be acknowledged and their books that should be read.
