Author, philanthropist, educator, engineer, and public speaker, Sudha Murty has won numerous accolades. She has written over 40 books, including the bestselling Three Thousand Stitches, Dollar Bahu, and Wise and Otherwise. She is also a well-known author of children’s books such as Grandma’s Bag of Stories, Gopi Diaries, How I Taught My Grandmother to Read and other stories among many others.
Sudha Murty started her writing career in 1978 with Atlanticadacheyinda, a travelogue in Kannada. Her first English book, Wise and Otherwise, was published in 2002. She continues to write in English and Kannada. Her books have also been translated into several Indian languages making her stories accessible to diverse audiences. Her books are universally loved, with over 6 million copies sold worldwide.
Sudha Murty writes for children and adults in various formats – novels, short-stories, and travelogues. Her stories are inspired by her travels, life experiences, and the people she meets. She often draws from mythology, helping young readers access values and principles in an easy and engaging way.
Sudha Murty grew up with her maternal grandparents listening to stories from their life and mythology. She believes this gave her a rich perspective to life. Unfortunately most children today don’t grow up with their grandparents. Her writing aims to bridge this gap. She brings life lessons alive through simple stories which are relevant and catch their attention. Gratitude, hard work, compassion and empathy are recurring themes communicated in her simple and heartwarming style. Her stories have a fable-like quality attracting people across all ages.
Her books have also been adapted into TV series and movies. Dollar Bahu, originally written in Kannada, was adapted into a TV series by Zee TV in 2001. Runa, a novel in Kannada, was adapted into a Marathi film in 2003. Her book – ‘The Bird with the Golden Wings’ has been adapted into a Netflix series. In addition, 52 stories from her books have come to life in an animation show called Story Time with Sudha Amma, available on Murty Media’s YouTube channel.
Sudha Murty’s literary work has been recognised through multiple awards including the Sahitya Academy Award in 2023, the R.K. Narayan Award for Literature in 2006, and the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award in 2020 among others. She holds ten honourary doctorates in literature from universities across India.
