Manu Baligar

Dr. Manu Baligar (Kannada:ಮನು ಬಳಿಗಾರ್) is a Kannada writer, author, playwright, former civil servant and current president of Kannada Sahitya Parishat. He was a civil servant in the Karnataka Administrative Service, and retired as the director of Department of Kannada and Culture, Government of Karnataka. He was elected the president of the Kannada Sahitya Parishat, an apex body for the promotion of Kannada language, on March 3, 2016 for a term of three years. He hails from Shigli in Gadag district, and is the brother of V. P. Baligar, a retired Indian Administrative Service officer and former chairman of Housing and Urban Development Corporation.

Manu Baligar has been known for his rich contributions to both literature and bureaucracy simultaneously. He has authored over 27 books including five story compilations, six anthologies and four biographies. He also happens to be the only bureaucrat to receive an honorary doctorate from Karnataka University for contributing to Kannada literature. Some of his famous works include Belaka Bedagu - compilation of his columns in Prajavani daily, Mylara Mahadeva - a play on the life of a legendary matrtyr, and a biography of former chief minister of Karnataka, S. R. Kanthi.