In recent years, the Indian English Literature has made conspicuous progress in all its forms, mainly in fiction and poetry. The present anthology aims at presenting an in-depth study of twenty-one authors who are both established as well as upcoming writers: Nissim Ezekiel, Nirad C. Chaudhuri, Girish Karnad, R.K. Narayan, Raja Rao, Manohar Malgonkar, Bhabani Bhattacharya, Taslima Nasrin, Salman Rushdie, Anita Desai, Shashi Deshpande, Amitav Ghosh, Vikram Seth, Githa Hariharan, Kavita Daswani, Manju Kapoor, M.N. Roy, Sri. Aurobindo, Mahatma Gandhi, Lohia and Ambedkar. The articles on poets contained in this anthology acquaint the readers with the fluctuating scene of thematic concerns and technical experimentations in Indian English poetry. All other articles are also unique of its kind, reflecting the above-mentioned authors’ treatment of their chosen literary genre.
Since most of the authors included in the present Volume for discussion are prescribed in the English syllabus in the various Indian Universities, it is hoped that both the teachers and students will find them extremely useful. Even the general readers who are interested in literature in English will find them intellectually stimulating.
Basavaraj Naikar, M.A., Ph.D., D.Litt. (California), Professor and Chairman, Department of English, Karnatak University, Dharwad (India), is a bilingual writer both in Kannada and in English. His English publications include Sarvajna: The Poet Omniscient of Karnataka, Critical Articles on Nirad C. Chaudhuri, Shakespeare’s Last Plays: A Study in Epic Affirmation, The Folk-Theatre of North-Karnataka, Sandalwood, Sparrows, Beloved Poems, Kanakadasa, Indian English Literature (6 Vols.), Critical Response to Indian English Literature, Perspectives on Commonwealth Literature, Indian Literature in English Translation, The Thief of Nagarahalli and Other Stories (which was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Fiction Prize for the Best First Book from Eurasia in 2000), The Rebellious Rani of Belavadi and Other Stories, The Sun behind the Cloud (A historical novel), Fall of Kalyana and Sangya Balya: Betrayal. His critical and research articles in Kannada and English have been published in regional, national and international journals. He reviews Indian literary works for World Literature Today, Oklahoma, USA and for many Indian journals regularly. He is the recipient of Gulbarga University Award for Translation, Olive Reddick Award from ASRC, Hyderabad and the Award from Gemini Academy, Panipat. His research interests include Indian English Literature, American Literature, Commonwealth Literature, Anglo-Indian Literature, Shakespeare Studies, Translation Studies and Comparative Literature.
