Ashok Banker Biography and latest books by Ashok Banker

Ashok Kumar Banker, an Indian novelist and short story writer, ranks as a pioneer among Indian authors. He is credited as the author of the first Indian crime novels in English, the first Indian TV series in English, the first Indian author of fantasy, science fiction, and horror. He has contributed to over 2,000 columns for the country’s leading media under his name. He has also won numerous marketing and advertising awards. He is also a successful screenwriter for documentaries, television series, and films. He has authored over 20 books and is best known for his Ramayana Series which has been published in 56 countries, in seven different languages.

Ashok Banker was born on February 7, 1964 in Mumbai, India. Since his early teens he has been a professional writer. He has also worked as a surveyor for market research firms going from door to door. Banker was a successful freelance writer and journalist for several years for publications like: The Times of India in Mumbai, and Outlook Magazine in New Delhi.

Banker is a contemporary novelist whose work is also used in academic levels because of their cross-cultural themes that portray realistic urban issues of India. He is also an essayist who focuses particularly on the hypocrisy on the Indian media, and the racial bias shown by the West to the South Asian Writers. Apart from being a commentator (on contemporary Indian literature), he is also a dynamic literary critic and reviewer. Most of the times he is known for his bluntness in reviewing Indian authored books.

As a writer, Banker has written several books of different genres ranging from fictional Indian urban life to series of mythological epics. Banker’s first three novels were crime thrillers in English, which was considered to be the first by an Indian writer. The critical acclaims he received got him noticed in the literature world.

Banker’s novel, Vertigo was the first novel that he wrote but it was published after his fourth novel. This was followed by Byculla Boy, and Beautiful Ugly. These three novels had autobiographical elements to it and are closely related to one another. In the year 2001, his non-fiction book about Bollywood was published entitled as, Bollywood: The Pocket Essential.                                     

He is mostly known for his work in the Ramayana Series and is still riding high on its success. The series has been ranked No.1 on the ‘Internet Book List’. With over a million copies of his books in print, he is considered to be one of the most loved and successful Indian authors. Currently he lives in Mumbai with his wife and two children.


Submitted by Precious Pheirim.