6 Exceptional Indian Women Writers

Shashi Deshpande
One of the well known writers in India, Shashi Deshpande has written books for both children and adults, for over thirty years now. Born in Karnataka the award winning novelist is the second daughter of the Kannada dramatist and writer Sriranga, was educated in Bombay and Bangalore. After finishing her degrees in Economics and law, Deshpande did a course on journalism at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in Mumbai. She also worked as a journalist for a couple of months for the magazine ‘Onlooker.’
Her first collection of short stories was published in 1978. Her first novel ‘'The Dark Holds No Terror’ got published in 1980. For the novel ‘That Long Silence’ she was awarded the Sahitya Akademi in 1990 and the Padma Shri in 2009.
Besides writing novels and short stories Deshpande has also penned four children’s books. Her nine novels, number of short stories and several discerning essays along with the four children’s books are compiled in a volume entitled ‘Writing from the Margin and Other Essays.’

Also Read: World's 10 Most Charismatic Female Political Leaders