M. K. Indira (1917-March 15 1994) was a well known novelist in the Kannada language. She has written novels like Phaniyamma which has won many awards. She started writing novels only after her age of forty-five.

Early life

Indira was born in year 1917 in the town of Thirthahalli

Thirthahalli

Thirthahalli is a panchayat town located in the Shimoga District of the state of Karnataka, India. It lies on the bank of the river Tunga and is also the headquarters of the Thirthahalli Taluk of Shimoga district.- Etymology :...

 in the state of Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...

, India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. Her native village was Narasimharajapura in Chikkamagalore district. Her formal education lasted for seven years before she got married. She studied Kannada poetry

Kannada poetry

Kannada poetry is poetry written in the Kannada language spoken in Karnataka. Karnataka is the land that gave birth to eight Jnanapeeth award winners, the highest honour bestowed for Indian literature...

 and also had a good knowledge of Hindi literature. She ventured into writing novels at a late age of forty-five.She passed away in the nineties.

Career

Indira's first published novel was Tungabhadra which was released in 1963. This was followed by other novels like Sadananda (1965), Gejje Pooje

Gejje Pooje

Gejje Pooje is a 1969 Kannada movie by Puttanna Kanagal starring Kalpana, Gangadhar and Leelavathi. Gejje means anklet and pooje means worship but in this context it means a mock marriage.- Plot :...

(1966) and Navaratna (1967). Her most well-known work is however Phaniyamma which was released in 1976. Phaniyamma is a novel based on the life of a child widow

Widow

A widow is a woman whose spouse has died, while a widower is a man whose spouse has died. The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed widowhood or occasionally viduity. The adjective form is widowed...

. It is a real life story of a widow whom Indira knew during her childhood. Indira heard the story when the widow narrated it to Indira's mother. This novel has been a subject matter of discussion in many books related to feminism

Feminism

Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...

. Phaniyamma was made into a film by the director, Prema Karanth

Prema Karanth

Prema Karanth was a well known theatre personality and the first-ever woman film-maker of Kannada cinema. She was the wife of B. V. Karanth and was known for the children's plays that she staged. She became the first ever woman director in Kannada cinema when she directed the film Phaniyamma,...

 and this film went on to win many international awards. Indira's other novels to be made into films are Gejje Pooje and Poorvapara. Indira has written about forty novels.

Awards

Indira's novels, Tungabhadra, Sadananda, Navaratna and Phaniyamma have won her the Kannada Sahitya Akademi awards. This annual award is given to the best Kannada literature of the year. In view of her contribution to literature, an award is constituted in Indira's name and is given to the best women writers. Thejaswini Niranjana, has translated Phaniyamma to English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

, and this translation has won her the Sahitya Akademi of India award

Sahitya Akademi Award

Sahitya Akademi Award is a literary honor in India which Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, annually confers on writers of outstanding works in one of the following twenty-four major Indian languagesAssamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, English, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri,...

.

List of Books

• Sadananda
• Tungabhadra
• Gejje Pooje
• Phaniyamma
• Giri Baale
• Madhuvana
• Mana Tumbida Madadi
• Hennina Aakankshe
• Taapadinda Tampige
• Brahmachaari
• Kalaadarshi
• Shantidhaama
• Navaratna
• Ambarada Apsare
• Nagabeku
• Navajeevana
• Pavaada
• Kalpana Vilasa
• Dashavatara
• Suswagatha
• To-Let
• Kathegara
• Aabharana
• Mane Kottu Nodu
• Kanyakumari Yarige
• Rasavahini
• Nagaveena
• Aathmasakhi
• Doctor
• Tapovanadalli
• Chidvilasa
• Jaathi Kettavalu
• Sukhanta
• Yaaru Hitavaru?
• Hoo Bana
• Varnaleele
• Hasivu
• Bidige Chandrama Donku
• Koopa
• Koochu Bhatta
• Jaala
• Gunda
• Musuku
• Kavalu
• Mohanamaale
• Anubhavakunja
• Noorondu Baagilu