Mallika SenguptaMallika Sengupta (1960-2011) was a Bengali poet, feminist, and reader of Sociology from Kolkata, and a celebrated literary figure whose unapologetically political poetry has been critically analyzed in India and abroad. She had been described in 'Poery International' as "a proponent of an unapologetically political poetry and an important voice in contemporary Bengali literature". Her journey with poetry started in 1981 and since then she has published eleven books of poetry, two novels and several essays, and edited an anthology of women's poetry from Bengal. She had been the head of the department of sociology in a Kolkata college, and also served as the Poetry Editor of Sananda, the leading fortnightly magazine for women (edited by actor, filmmaker Aparna Sen). Sengupta has been the recipient of many prestigious awards, including the Sukanto Puraskar (1998) from the Government of West Bengal, India and a Junior Fellowship for Literature (1997 - 99) from the Department of Culture, Government of India. She also travelled to several poetry festivals, conferences and seminars in India, Sweden, Austria, USA and Bangladesh. Several English translations of her work have been anthologized and also published in various literary and academic journals. Along with her husband, the noted poet Subodh Sarkar, she was the founder-editor of Bhashanagar, a culture magazine in Bengali. As an activist and academician, Sengupta has been actively involved with the cause of gender justice and other social issues throughout her lifetime. She also initiated Aloprithivi along with her fellow poet and artists, a forum committed to raising consciousness among marginalized women and children through poetry, music and drama. 'Kobir Bouthan' (Ananda Publishers, 2011) is one of her three published novels which received critical acclaim. Read More Read Less