Contents: Foreword. Preface. Acknowledgements. 1. Mulk Raj Anand : an icon of Indian English literature. 2. Amrita Pritam : the most forceful voice of Indian literary scene. 3. A people's poet : Satchidananda Routray. 4. Epoch Maker Harivansh Rai bachchan. 5. Gopi Chand : Versatile scholar writer. 6. Manoj Das : authentic interpreter of India's cultural and spiritual heritage. 7. Mahasweta Devi : writer Ambassador of Subalterns. 8. Indira Goswami : writer-crusader from Assam. 9. The novels of Daleep Kaur Tiwana : focus on women. 10. Annada Shankar Ray : the Voltairean of Bengali Literature. 11. Govind Chandra Pande : a multi-faceted scholar and writer. 12. Gangadhar Meher : the miniature Kalidasa in Oriya Literature. 13. Nilmani Phookan : a forefront Assamese Poet. 14. Kuntala Kumari Sabat : a nationalist poet from Orissa. 15. Mahesh Elkunchwar : eminent avantgrade playwright. 16. B.V. Karanth : a creator of theatre history. 17. Vijay Tendulkar's Shock Theatre. 18. Ramnath Shastri : the Bharatendu Harishchandra of Dogri literature.19. Writer and scholar R.N. Dandekar. 20. Bhavabhuti : master of drama in performance. 21. Gopinath Mohanty : a major novelist of the pre-independence era of Indian literature. 22. Sitakant Mahapatra: versatile poet and scholar. 23. U.R. Anantha Murthy : the myriadminded writer. 24. Janaki Ballav Patnaik : creative writer and elder statesman. 25. Kaifi Azmi : poet of the downtrodden. 26. Bhisham Sahni : a torchbearer of secularism. 27. Subhas Mukhopadhyay : 'Padatik' poet of Bengal. 28. Rajendra Keshavlal Shah : a poet who changed the Gujarat Literary scene. 29. Vijayadan Detha : Rajasthan's eminent Folkrist. 30. Oriya literature : Adi Yug to Atyadhunik Yug. 31. The century's first Nobel Laureate: V.S. Naipaul. 32. Ramakanta Rath's dominate idiom in New Oriya poetry. Index.
"In these essays the author's approach has been to look at an eminent contemporary Indian writer in relation to a local cultural ethos as well as to the larger context of world literature. Some of the Indian writers under discussion have been honoured with the most coveted of national and international awards." (jacket)
