Introduction
In the “Author Spotlight: Profiles & Biographies” series we will learn about one of the famous authors of India – Sh. R.K.Narayan. His full name was Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Narayanaswami. In almost all academic institutions Library, books written by him are available. R.K. Narayan was born on 10th October 1906 in Madras, Chennai.
Family & Early Life
R.K.Narayan was born in the Tamil Brahmin family. He was one of the eight siblings. He had six brothers, including him, and two sisters in his family. His father was a headmaster in the government school. So, his early education starts in his school only.
Education
As his father was a school headmaster and his job was transferrable so his early education was started with his grandparents. His grandmother used to teach him various subjects like math, Sanskrit and mythological moral values. At the beginning of his educational life he took admission in number of schools. His higher education was completed in Mysore, Karnataka. He was a voracious reader and used to read almost all type of books fiction, non-fiction, biography and autobiography etc.
Books written by R.K.Narayan
He has written many books in his life. His written books have the essence of South India. He has also written many short stories and retold the Indian epics like the Ramayana and Mahabharat. Find below list of books, novels and short stories written by R.K.Narayan-
Novels
- Swami and Friends (1935)
- The Bachelor of Arts (1937)
- The Dark Room (1938)
- The English Teacher (1945)
- Mr. Sampath – The Printer of Malgudi (1949)
- The Financial Expert (1952)
- Waiting for the Mahatma (1955)
- The Guide (1958) – Winner of the Sahitya Akademi Award
- The Man-Eater of Malgudi (1961)
- The Vendor of Sweets (1967)
- The Painter of Signs (1976)
- A Tiger for Malgudi (1983)
- Talkative Man (1986)
- The World of Nagaraj (1990)
- Grandmother’s Tale (1992)
Short Story Collections
- Malgudi Days (1942)
- An Astrologer’s Day and Other Stories (1947)
- Lawley Road and Other Stories (1956)
- A Horse and Two Goats (1970)
- Under the Banyan Tree and Other Stories (1985)
- The Grandmother’s Tale and Selected Stories (1994)
Non-fiction
- My Dateless Diary (1960)
- Next Sunday (1960)
- My Days: A Memoir (1974)
- The Emerald Route (1980)
- A Writer’s Nightmare: Selected Essays 1958-1988 (1988)
Retellings of Indian Epics
- Gods, Demons, and Others (1964)
- The Ramayana (1972)
- The Mahabharata (1978)
Award & Recognition
R.K.Narayan was authored many books in his life and he was given many awarded for his literary works. Find the list of such award and recognition below:
- Sahitya Akademi Award in 1958 for his novel “The Guide”.
- Padma Bhushan in 1964, One of India’s highest civilian honors.
- AC Benson Medal in 1980, awarded by the Royal Society of Literature, UK.
- Bharatiya Jnanpith Award in 1986.
- Padma Vibhushan in 2000, India’s second-highest civilian award.
Summary in Tabular form
We can also know about him through the following table, which includes a brief information about him –
| Particulars | Details |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Narayanaswami |
| Birth Date | October 10, 1906 |
| Birth Place | Chennai |
| Death Date | May 13, 2001 |
| Occupation | Author |
| Language | English, Kannada |
| Genre | Fiction, Mythology, Non-fiction |
| Notable Works | “Swami and Friends”, “The Guide”, “Malgudi Days” |
Malgudi Days: Exploring the timeless magic of stories
R.K. Narayan is best known for his story named Malgudi Days. Malgudi Days is a collection of short stories. It is concentrated in a small village called Malgudi. Malgudi Days was written in 1943 by R.K. Narayan. It is a simple classic story of a young boy named Swami.
Find below the list of titles of the short stories :
- The Tiger’s Claw
- An Astrologer’s Day
- Lawley Road
- Swami and Friends
- A Hero
- The Doctor’s Word
- The Missing Mail
- The Bachelor of Arts
- The Edge
- Salt and Sawdust
Malgudi Days on Social Media Platforms:
Malgudi Days is also available on YouTube and Amazon Prime. You can also watch its all episodes. Get the link below –
On Youtube
Video credit
KVS Library acknowledges and appreciates the creator’s work in producing this valuable content on YouTube. The thumbnail has been taken from the YouTube channel – MalgudiDays. Each thumbnail will directly take users to the YouTube video.
On Prime Video
Picture Credit
KVS Library acknowledges and appreciates the creator’s work in producing this valuable content on Prime Video. The image has been taken from the prime video channel – MalgudiDays. The thumbnail will directly take users to the Amazon prime video.
Very nice theme
Thanks for your appreciation.
Shrikant
KVS Library