Kannada novelist Geetha Nagabhushan, whose works were known for the resistance to patriarchy and gender stereotypes, has died of cardiac arrest at a private hospital here on Sunday night. She was 78.
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Born on March 25, 1942, into a poor family in Kalaburagi, Ms. Nagabhushan had to struggle hard to pass through the patriarchal environment to get educated and serve as a lecturer, reader and professor for over thirty years. She was the first woman writer to bag Kendra Sahitya Academy and Nadoja awards and serve as the chairperson of Karnataka Sahitya Academy. She had presided over 76th Akhil Bharat Kannada Sahitya Sammelan, a prestigious literary fest, held at Gadag in 2020.
Ms. Nagabhushan’s works that challenged the patriarchal approaches and gender discriminations were widely admired across sections. Her works include 50 short stories, 27 novels, 12 plays, two collections of poems and research works. Baduku (novel), Hasimamsa Mattu Haddugalu (novel), Avva Mattu Itara Kathegalu (collection of short stories), Jwalantha (collection of short stories) and Jogini (play) are among her works that were widely read and discussed.
The honours and awards she received includes Karnataka Rajotsava Award (1998), Danachintamani Attimabbe Award (2002), Nadoja award (2004), Kendra Sahitya Academy award (2004), Bhasha Parishat Award from Kolkata (2012) and an honorary doctorate from Gulbarga University among others.
