Mahasweta Devi is an Indian social activist and writer. She was born on 14 January 1926 in Dhaka, British India. Her first schooling was in Dhaka, but after the partition of India she moved to West Bengal in India. She completed her Bachelor of Arts degree with honours from Vishvabharati University in Santiniketan. Later she completed MA in English literature from Calcutta University. In 1964, she began teaching at Bijoygarh College and during the same period, she started her career as a journalist and creative writer. Her best still now is regarded as Hajar Churashir Maa, for which she won the highest literary prize for Indian literature. Other noted works include - Aranyer Adhikar, The Queen of Jhansi, Dust on the Road, Bashai Tudu, Of Women, Outcasts, Peasants, and Rebels , Rudali, Imaginary Maps, Chotti Munda evam Tar Tir, The Book of the Hunter, Breast Stories, Outcast and Kulaputra. Many of her noted works have been made feature films of which Rudali and Hazaar Chaurasi Ki Maa need special mention.

She received Jnanpith award in the year 1996 for her Bengali work, Hajar Churashir Maa. She has received Sahitya Akademi Award (Bengali) in 1979 for Aranyer Adhikar, Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1997 for Journalism, Literature and the Creative Communication Arts, Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement in 2012 and Honoris causa in 1999 from IGNOU. She has also received Padma Vibhushan and Yashwantrao Chavan National Award.