District writer Pratima Rai has been selected for the prestigious Smt. Vijaya Vishnu Bhat Endowment Award, instituted by the Kodagu District Kannada Sahitya Parishad.
A total of seven women writers from the district submitted their works for the 2025-26 award. The entries were evaluated by a panel of three senior writers, and the final selection was made based on their combined assessment.
Pratima Rai, a resident of Daddagadi in Abburkatte village of Somwarpet taluk, was born on December 9, 1981, to Surendra Rai D.S. and Saraswati S. Rai. She holds postgraduate degrees in Kannada and History, along with a B.Ed qualification.
She began her career as a Kannada teacher in 2004 and has been serving as a Kannada lecturer at St. Ann’s Degree College since 2019.
Her interests span literature, music, and writing. A regular contributor to newspapers, she is actively involved in literary organisations, including the Madikeri Taluk Kannada Sahitya Parishad and the Janapada Sahitya Parishad.
She has delivered lectures on Kannada language and culture at various institutions and forums, including Rajyotsava programmes and literary events. She has also worked as a news anchor for Kodagu Channel and Channel 24 Karnataka, and her talks have been broadcast on All India Radio, Madikeri and Bengaluru.
Her book Antaragange, a collection of her newspaper columns, was published in 2024. In recognition of her contributions to literature and education, she has also received the Kannada Payaswini Achievement Award from Kasargod Kannada Bhavan.
The Kodagu District Kannada Sahitya Parishad congratulated Pratima Rai on her achievement, said Honorary Secretary Revathi Ramesh in a press release.
