Daulat Bikram Bista

Balkrishna Sama (1902 – 20 June 1981) was Nepal’s most influential modern playwright, poet, and literary reformer, widely honored as the Shakespeare of Nepal for his pioneering contribution to Nepali drama. Born in Gyaneshwor, Kathmandu, he began his literary career in the early 1920s, writing socially conscious plays that challenged tradition and expanded the artistic scope of Nepali theatre. His worksincluding Prem Pinda, Bhater, Tansen, and Amar Singh introduced psychological depth, historical imagination, and modern dramatic structure to Nepali literature. A former army officer turned full‑time writer, Sama received Nepal’s highest honors for his cultural impact, and his legacy continues to define the foundation of Nepali drama and stage literature.

Saru Bhakta (born 1955), pen name of Bhakta Raj Shrestha, is a celebrated Nepali novelist, playwright, poet, and songwriter, honored with the Madan Puraskar for his landmark novel Pagal Basti, widely regarded as a classic of Nepali literature. A leading figure in post‑1970s Nepali writing, he introduced psychological depth, postmodern narrative techniques, and experimental dramatic forms. He has also contributed significantly to Nepal’s cultural institutions, serving in the Nepal Academy and as Chancellor of the Nepal Music and Drama Academy, while founding multiple literary and theatre organizations in Pokhara.

(कुमार नगरकोटी) is one of Nepal’s most influential contemporary fiction writers, known for his surrealism, magical realism, and highly experimental narrative style. Born on 2 December 1974 (17 Mangsir 2031 BS) in Lalitpur, Nepal, he has established himself as a bold, genre‑bending storyteller whose works challenge traditional Nepali literary forms. He began his literary journey in 1999 with an English poem titled “Sorry Buddha, I Cannot Follow You.” At age 21, he published his first story “Nikash” in Sahakalam Sahitya, a publication that typically featured only established writers—marking his early recognition. Nagarkoti’s debut book “Mokshanta: Kathmandu Fever” (2011) introduced his signature eccentric style. He followed it with “Fossil” (2013), “Aksharganj” (2014), “Mistika” (2015), “Ghatmandu” (2016), “Docha” (2017), “Gya” (2018), and the experimental “Kalpa‑Grantha” (2021), which contains 63 experimental tales including typographs, postcards, and screenplays. His novel Gya was shortlisted for the Madan Puraskar (2075 BS), and Kalpa‑Grantha was shortlisted for Madan Puraskar (2077 BS). He also won the Barsha Pustak Puraskar (2013 AD) for Fossil. Nagarkoti has also written acclaimed plays such as “Coma — A Political Sex” (2015) and “Bath‑Tub” (2019), both staged at Shilpee Theatre under the direction of Yubraj Ghimire. He made a cameo appearance in the Nepali film “Lal Purja” (2018). He describes himself not as a writer, but as a “fiction designer.”

Viplob Pratik is a Nepali poet, lyricist, novelist, and editor known for his socially conscious poetry, modern Nepali lyrics, and editorial contributions to contemporary literature. Active since the late 1990s, he has published acclaimed poetry collections, novels, and lyrical works that explore themes of identity, politics, human emotion, and cultural transformation. His writing blends sharp observation with lyrical depth, establishing him as a distinctive voice in modern Nepali literature.