Chandrakanta (1938- ) is a writer, born in Srinagar, India. She has written many novels and stories in the Hindi language including the epic Katha Satisar, which was awarded the Vyas Samman prize in 2005.
To date, her published short stories number about 200. She has also published seven novels as well as poetical works. Her writing concerns socio-political issues and women's concerns in general. The Indian State of Kashmir constitutes the backdrop of most of her writings, especially terrorism and the repercussions of it, notably the mass exodus of the majority community of "Kashmiri Pandits".
Her magnum opus is Katha Satisar [2001]. She has been the recipient of several awards, including the Subramanya Bharati award, awarded by the President of India for her literary work. Her works have also been translated in many Indian languages, and into English. Her novel Ailan Gali Zinda Hai has been translated for the first time in English by Manisha Chaudhry, published by Zubaan Books (an imprint of 'Kaali for Women', Penguin India) as A Street in Srinagar,[1] The translation was shortlisted for the 2012 DSC Prize for South Asian Literature.[2]
Her latest epic Hindi novel, Katha Satisar (published by Rajkamal publications), has been translated into English by Ranjana Kaul as The Saga of Satisar - published by Zubaan Books.It was Longlisted for the DSC award for South Asian literature in 2018.
