Hema Naik

Hema Naik (née Dhumatkar) is an Indian Konkani writer. She is a recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Award and the Sahitya Akademi Translation Prize and is the wife of the Konkani writer Pundalik Naik. She publishes books under the banner of Volvoi-based Apurbai Prakashan.

Early life Born as Hema Dhumatkar, she is an Economics graduate who began writing when she was a student activist. She attended the World Women Conference at Kolkata in 1973, which led her to begin writing about women in society in Konkani.

Career Through her early writings, Hema Naik attacked society's prevalent feudalism and male chauvinism, covering the aspect of women in society in Konkani literature. She began a series of conferences aimed at young female writers called "Chitrangi Melave" to integrate the various feminist ideals in Konkani literature. She was part of the Konkani language agitation and the agitation for Goa's statehood in 1985. She has published more than 100 books and journals in Konkani under her publication house, Apurbai Prakashan. In response to the rise of cases of abuse of women in the country in 2012–2013, she serially published a novel, Log Out in Dainik Herald. In 2017, she had an FIR lodged against her for publishing Vishnu Wagh's book Sudhir Sukta, which became a subject of debate for its objectionable content on castes and women.

Works Translations Taath Kana by P. S. Ramani (autobiography) into Konkani Autobiography of Bhalchandra Mungekar into Konkani Autobiography of Narendra Jadhav into Konkani Kali Katha: Via Bypass by Alka Saraogi into Konkani Goa: The Daughter's Story by Maria Aurora Couto into Konkani She has also won the TMA Pai Foundation Manipal's Best Book Award for Bhogdandd. Her work features in the third volume of Knit India Through Literature by researcher-writer Sivasankari and in Hot is the Moon, a collection of stories and poems written by women in India and edited by Arundhathi Subramaniam. Her work in publishing the magazine Chitrangi was recognised with the Katha Journal award by the Federation of India Publishers, New Delhi.