Indian English literature is characterized by its use of English as a medium of expression, its portrayal of Indian culture and society, and its exploration of postcolonial themes.

Raja Ram Mohan Roy is often considered the father of Indian English literature due to his pioneering efforts in using English to write about Indian social and cultural issues.

Indian English literature often explores themes such as the struggle for independence, the caste system, the partition of India, and other social and political issues.

Salman Rushdie is known for his novel 'Midnight's Children', which won the Booker Prize in 1981.

Arundhati Roy is known for her novel 'The God of Small Things', which won the Booker Prize in 1997.

Vikram Seth is known for his novel 'A Suitable Boy', which was published in 1993.

Amitav Ghosh is known for his novel 'The Hungry Tide', which won the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 2005.

Kiran Desai is known for her novel 'The Inheritance of Loss', which won the Man Booker Prize in 2006.

Jhumpa Lahiri is known for her novel 'Interpreter of Maladies', which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2000.

Anita Desai is known for her novel 'Clear Light of Day', which won the National Book Critics Circle Award in 1980.

Bharati Mukherjee is known for her novel 'Jasmine', which won the National Book Critics Circle Award in 1989.

Shashi Deshpande is known for her novel 'The House of Blue Mangoes', which won the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1990.

Nayantara Sahgal is known for her novel 'Mistaken Identity', which won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize in 1988.

Manju Kapur is known for her novel 'The Last Song of Dusk', which won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize in 2002.

Anita Nair is known for her novel 'The Better Man', which won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize in 2001.