Fr Prashant Madtha SJ is a prolific writer with a literary career spanning over 40 years. Fr. Madtha gained immense popularity for his satirical and humorous columns, such as Chakita Chitta, Kitalam, and Vally Padraib. In 2008, India Today weekly magazine recognised Fr Prashant Madtha as one of the ’50 Pioneers of Change’.
His modern contributions to Kannada and Konkani are too numerous. Among countless works in Kannada and Konkani, ‘Padanidhi’ is the very first ever Kannada Thesaurus. He also brought out Konkani Thesar, which is considered to be a treasure of Konkani literature. In 2004, he published a dictionary containing 10,000 Konkani idioms.
His work includes several books-(Kannada) Veera Virakta; Kristhana Anukarane; Savira Hoovugalu Aralali; Ninnanthe Naanagalu; Saanidhya; (Konkani) Kittallam; Rattavoll; Konkani Pikollim; Konkani Thesar; (English) ‘On Eagle’s Wings’. His articles have been featured in prominent periodicals such as Raknno, Uzwad, Udayavani, Deccan Herald, and many other journals.
Some of the awards Fr. Madtha received are the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Konkani Catholic Association, the Indian Catholic Press Association Award in 2008, the Danthi Smarak Award in 2008, and the Sandesha Award for Konkani Literature in 2009. Over the years, he has been honored with several other prestigious awards, including the Kannada Rajyotsava Award (2024) and the Bahrain Konkani Kutaam Award. He has been awarded the prestigious 2025 Daiji Dubai Literary Award. Apart from his literary work, he was a great orator known for his wit and humor. He has served as a lecturer, principal, and director at St. Aloysius College in Mangaluru and St Joseph College in Bengaluru.
Born on September 6, 1947, in Sullia, Fr. Madtha had his early education at Board High School, Sullia, and PUC at St. Aloysius College, Mangaluru. He then earned a Degree with a major in Kannada and Sanskrit at University College, Mangaluru, and his Philosophy Theology from Jnana Deepa Vidya Peet, Pune, and a Masters in Kannada from Bangalore University.
*Collected from the public domain.
* Updated on 01/04/2025
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