Ray shot to fame with her debut novel Barsha Basanta Baishakha in 1974. Her magnum opus Yajnaseni, which followed in 1984, revolving around the character of Draupadi in the Mahabharata, was cast in the framework of the modern-day Indian woman with her individual identity
Pratibha Ray is the first Odia woman writer to receive the Bharatiya Jnanpith, India’s highest literary award. Photo Courtesy: istock
Nationally esteemed Odia author Pratibha Ray is the 2024 recipient of the Literature Live! The Mumbai Litfest’s Godrej Lifetime Achievement Award. She is one of the most reputed writers in India, and her books, while of high literary stature, are also very popular with mass readers, and have been adapted into movies, radio plays, and TV serials.
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Pioneering writer, poet, critic, researcher, and translator, Pratibha Ray has forged a transformative voice in literature in India. She shot to fame with her debut novel Barsha Basanta Baishakha in 1974. Her magnum opus Yajnaseni, which followed in 1984, revolving around the character of Draupadi in the Mahabharata, was cast in the framework of the modern-day Indian woman with her individual identity. Her literary acclaim was sealed with the publication of her epic novel Mahamoha in 2012, a bold re-telling of the Ramayana from Ahalya’s point of view, which established her mastery of nuanced interpretation and complex characters.
Pratibha Ray has been showered with distinguished awards for her work, including the Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri, Sahitya Akademi, Odisha Sahitya Akademi, Moortidevi and Saptarshi Awards. She is the first Odia woman writer to receive the Bharatiya Jnanpith, India’s highest literary award. She is one of the most prolific Indian writers, with more than 10 novels, 26 short story collections, 10 travelogues, five books of critical essays, two poetry collections and an autobiography titled Amrit Anwesha (In Search of Nectar). Her work has been translated into several Indian and foreign languages. In addition, she has published research on tribal life and culture in Odisha. She has also worked in the cyclone-affected areas of the state.
Accepting the Award, Pratibha Ray said “I am honoured that Literature Live! The Mumbai Litfest is bestowing on me the Lifetime Achievement Award given annually to authors with significant contribution to the field of Indian Literature. I accept the Award with gratitude and humility. Of course,
Awards are not the destination but inspiring celebratory milestones in the journey of ideas. I thank the Litfest for recognising my body of work”.
Co-Director of Literature Live! The Mumbai Litfest, Amy Fernandes, said: “We are proud to add our own recognition to the many that Pratibha Ray has justifiably received. It has for her really been a lifetime of wielding a most creative pen. We are delighted that she has accepted the Award, and to listen to and learn from her discourse and erudition will be a huge privilege for all of us attending the festival”.
Nadir Godrej, chairman, Godrej Industries Group, said: "I am delighted that Pratibha Ray has accepted this year’s Godrej Literature Live! Lifetime Achievement Award. Her novels have elevated both Odia and Indian literature. A master storyteller, her genius lies in blending literary excellence with accessibility, inspiring progressive thought across a wide audience”.
Past recipients of the Literature Live! Lifetime Achievement Award include C S Lakshmi, Mahesh Elkunchwar, Anita Desai, Ruskin Bond, Shanta Gokhale, Sir Mark Tully, Girish Karnad, Amitav Ghosh, Kiran Nagarkar, M T Vasudevan Nair, Khushwant Singh, Sir V S Naipaul, Mahashweta Devi.
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