Top Ten Books By Contemporary Indian Authors That Everyone Should Read In 2021

Identity by Arundhati Sahoo

Arundhati Sahoo, the author of Identity is a management professional who graduated from NITIE, Mumbai. She is an avid reader and writes poetry, fiction as well as short stories. Identity, her second book, speaks of the forbidden realms of imagination, where the protagonists --- an  eunuch and an aged prostitute --- see possibilities for life and are bonded for life with each other. They identify each other beyond what's on the surface and in turn develop mutual respect and care. This book is all about struggle, the fight with discrimination, hope, possibilities, respect, and humanity above all. It's a must-read for it allows one to explore beyond the regular.

Extra Ordinary by Sailee Tiwari

It features the stories of 12 people and their life insights. Although the stories are not connected, a string of unusual or a hint of out-of-ordinary is the string that connects them all. They feature myriad life experiences, thoughts and feelings that have lessons in-store to ponder about. A reader can connect with them and can link the elements and incidents with their life. 

A software engineer by profession, Sailee expresses herself openly and elegantly through words. She has won several awards for her book like Cherry Book Awards as a Special Mention, Spectrum Awards for ‘Inspiring Women 2021’ hosted by Spectrum of Thoughts, Writer’s Ink Awards 2021 organized by Applause awards in association with Silkyfolks productions, Sahityakosh Samman award organized by NE8X official team.

The Last War and Other Stories by Sambit Daspatnaik

This debut book by the award-winning author Sambit Daspatnaik has received a lot of appreciation for its unique Mythological Science Fiction genre and other Science Fiction stories to trigger your mind to ask What If! The main story revolves around mythology with a scientific touch where the author takes the readers back to 2080 BCE in Bharata (Ancient India) where the descendants of the Pandavas face a mammoth invasion. The plot thickens as there is an element of old warfare secrets used. There is speculation on whether the Ancient Aliens (the sky Gods) come to the rescue in their spaceships. The book has other short science fiction stories that cover different genres of sci-fi exploring spirituality as an alternative to the failing advanced medical research in the distant future against a pandemic in an alien planet, an extra-terrestrial object with unlimited energy, the resurrection of our dying Sun and a beautifully weaved story on how Anna's life changes due to an alien eye transplant.

Rarely do we see an Indian author dealing with the science fiction genre intertwined with mythology and advanced technology used in our ancient past. Sambit’s interests are in ancient aliens, mythology, and space travel. His writing interest started from a young age. Sambit is an IT software professional residing in Hyderabad. In his free time, he loves to paint, take photographs and spend time with his family.

Phases of COVID-19 by Dr. Priyasi Das

The world is changing every day and people are suffering from this disastrous pandemic with their mental and physical strength. This virus is truly taking away our loved ones and creating a barrier of destruction in our life with huge panic attacks and depression. This book contains the truth of this deadly virus which includes several deep thoughts & elaborations regarding proper precautions, symptoms, medications, etc. which portrays Priyasi's personal experiences regarding the virus. She is an award-winning author, engineer, publisher, honorary doctorate in Literature, model, world record holder, celebrity content creator, founder of Priya's Wisdom Publisher, and has authored nine books and 48 anthologies.

Strangers With Known Faces by Gautam Dutta

It is an action thriller with an embedded love story. Primarily it is about four estranged University friends who reunite after 20 years to investigate the murder of their fifth friend- with them as suspects. The story is set in the near future- with the narrative involving complicated love triangles, political scandals, and high-octane action sequences. But behind all the sound and the fury, there is a deep philosophical message that only some readers may get. It is about the nature of the self. What do we do when truth, on which rests our foundations, gets challenged? The themes that are explored are loneliness and intimacy; abuse of power; what exactly are we? Are we a stranger to ourselves as much as we are to our most intimate partners? If you want the romantic drama of Dil Chaahta Hai and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna with the thrills of Mission: Impossible, give this one a read.

A Turbulent Mind - My journey to Ironman 70.3 by Swetha Amit

Sometimes in life, you are hit by an unexpected wave of change. A change that will forcibly stir you out of your cocooned comfort zone. You may face despair, loneliness, and depression. This is not a dead-end but just a test to rediscover yourself and unleash your inner potential. "I wasn’t ready to put myself through a gruelling training regime. At the same time, I had to conquer my fear of swimming in open water and lay those inner demons to rest. When I completed my first Sprint distance Triathlon, I was elated. It motivated me to pursue this sport called Triathlon for which I developed a passion over time. Ultimately, I followed my dream of crossing the finish line of Ironman 70.3, to consider myself worthy of something. For those of you who are thinking about getting into this sport, my book A Turbulent mind will motivate you to take that plunge. And for the rest of us triathletes, you will find a part of yourself in the chapters of this book," believes Shwetha who has a double master’s degree in Psychology and is pursuing MFA in Fiction Writing at the University of San Francisco. She also has a certificate in non-fiction creative writing from Stanford University. As a writer, she has multiple published works, which include several anthologies apart from her memoir. Her book has received recognition at various forums and won a couple of awards. She is also an avid reader, runner, and triathlete.

Memorable Memoir by Mrityunjay

Recently, Mrityunjay got Cherry Book Award for Best Author under the Poem/Verse Category for his book "Memorable Memoir". It is a narrative poem book where the story is woven into poetry. From love to pain, the book holds the magic till its end. Mrityunjay is currently working on his next book. Mrityunjay believes that story makes us what we are. And he will always give his best to bring out good stories with a unique storytelling approach.

Whispers of a Nyctophile by Pragya Gogoi

An Amazon bestseller within just 1 month of release, this one is a multiple award-winning, beautiful collection of poetry exhibiting a plethora of emotions that people from every walk of life can relate to and reflect upon. The debut author beautifully pens down 61 long and short poems on manifold aspects of life with a vivid imagination and rich vocabulary.
Talented, young author Pragya Gogoi makes her debut with this beautiful book that has taken the literary world by storm, grabbing one award after the other. She holds the record of being the youngest Indian author to write a bestselling debut book in just 3 days. Praised and featured by leading news and media portals like Hindustan Times, The Week Magazine, Daily Hunt, etc, Pragya has also co-authored 10 books and has written for many National and International magazines. At 20, she has already won more than 10 awards for her contribution to literature.

Rhime of Time by Padmaja Bharti

This thought-provoking yet relaxing compilation of simple and complex poems written by NIFT graduate Padmaja Bharti is a bestseller for a reason. The poetess has used the words smartly to convey her message through the prose. She has done a fantastic job with the descriptions that follow each poem. A designer by qualification, Padmaja is also a trained classical dancer.

The Pride of t20 cricket by Author Abhishek Kapoor

This cricket-based comedy is an international bestseller. It aims to bring a smile to the faces of the readers and achieves it, even creating a laughter riot at some points. The characters are quite relatable to the people we meet daily, and the plot is extremely fast-paced. The Selfish Betrayals author did a brilliant job in writing this gem.