Pratibha Ray is a well known name in the literary and cultural circles of Odisha. She was born on January 1, 1943 at Alabol, a remote village in the Balikuda area of Cuttack district. Her outstanding contributions to literature have earned her global recognition. Pratibha mostly attributes the boldness, revolt and humanism in her literature to the impact of Vaishnavism, her family religion, which preaches no caste or class distinctions. She wrote her first poem at the age of nine.

Pratibha’s contribution to the genre of Odia novel and short story is quite magnificent not only in terms of volume, but also in terms of its uniqueness. Her outstanding contributions to literature have earned her several prestigious awards and recognitions. She has been conferred the Padmashree honour by the Government of India, Moorthidevi award by Bharatiya Jnanpith and the Sahitya Akademi award by the Odisha Sahitya Akademi.

Her short stories and novels have been adapted for Radio plays, TV serials and films. She has 21 novels, 22 short story collections and 10 travelogues alongwith some books for children to her credit. About 300 short stories have been published in literary journals of repute in Odia and other Indian languages during the last 30 years. Apart from creative writing, she has written many research articles on Education and Psychology. She has active interest in social reform and has fought against social injustice on many occasions.