Ananta Press is delighted to announce Richa Srivastava as the official winner of the Ananta Press Sahitya Ratna Award for her remarkable non-fiction book, Lord Shiva – The “Intense” Lover. This recognition celebrates a work that brings together autobiography, devotion, personal experience, spiritual belief, and extraordinary real-life incidents in a deeply engaging manner.
Lord Shiva – The “Intense” Lover is not presented as an ordinary spiritual book. It is the personal story of Richa Srivastava and her journey as a devoted follower of Lord Shiva. The book records supernatural experiences and real incidents that have shaped her faith, thinking, and life. Except for the names, nothing in the narrative is fictional. This honesty gives the book a strong emotional foundation and makes readers feel close to the author’s experiences.
The book has been selected by the award committee because of its originality and the courage with which the author has shared events that may appear unbelievable in the modern age. The narrative has the power to make readers pause and ask how such experiences can still happen today. This sense of wonder creates curiosity from the opening chapter and encourages readers to continue reading without losing interest.
The book does not depend only on mystery. Its real strength lies in the sincerity of the author’s voice and the deep connection between faith and lived experience. Richa Srivastava presents her journey with conviction while allowing readers the freedom to understand and interpret the incidents according to their own beliefs.
The committee also recognised the book for its literary and reader value. As an autobiography, it allows readers to enter the personal world of the author and understand how devotion can influence decisions, emotions, challenges, and inner strength. It speaks to readers who are interested in spirituality, personal transformation, unexplained experiences, and the relationship between a devotee and the divine.
Its message is clear that faith is not always limited to prayers or rituals. It can become a living force that guides a person through difficult, confusing, and unexpected moments. The book encourages readers to remain open to experiences that may exist beyond ordinary understanding.
Richa Srivastava’s own journey adds further depth to this achievement. She is an author, counsellor, motivational speaker, entrepreneur, and professional with extensive experience in intellectual property and content. She has founded two startups connected with intellectual property and content and has consistently shown a willingness to learn, grow, and create.
Her confidence and versatility were also visible when she became a beauty pageant finalist in 2019 and travelled to Greece for the finale. Her journey proves that professional excellence, creative expression, personal confidence, and spiritual devotion can exist together.
Richa Srivastava’s professional and literary journey has received recognition from several respected platforms. She has received the BrandIndia Women in Business Award 2021, Indian Achievers Award 2021, Foxclues India’s Top 100 Women Icon 2021, and the Glantor X Women in Leadership Award 2022.
She was also honoured with the Desh Ratan Award for Writer 2024, Rabindra Ratan Puraskar 2024, International Achievers Award 2024, and recognition among the Top 100 Outstanding Women of 2024 by Diva Planet Magazine. Her work and presence have also been featured in Lifestyle Magazine.
A major milestone in her journey came in June 2024, when she received a world record recognition for her exceptional skill in motivational speaking and writing. She also received the National Literature Award 2024 for Lord Shiva – The “Intense” Lover. These achievements reflect her commitment to meaningful communication and her ability to inspire people through both spoken and written words.
The Ananta Press Sahitya Ratna Award honours authors whose work shows originality, emotional impact, literary purpose, and a meaningful contribution to readers. The six-member reading committee found that Richa Srivastava’s book carries all these qualities. It is personal yet universal, spiritual yet grounded in real experience, and mysterious yet emotionally sincere.
By sharing her life without hiding its extraordinary moments, the author has created a work that can strengthen faith, awaken curiosity, and encourage readers to reflect on their own relationship with belief and destiny.
Ananta Press warmly congratulates Richa Srivastava on becoming an official winner of the Ananta Press Sahitya Ratna Award. Her achievement is a proud moment for readers, writers, and everyone who believes that personal truth can become powerful literature.
We wish her continued success, wider recognition, and many more opportunities to inspire society through her writing, counselling, motivational work, and spiritual journey. Her contribution to literature is valuable, distinctive, and truly deserving of this honour.
Individual Jury Feedback
Glenville Ashby
After reading Lord Shiva – The “Intense” Lover, I found the book deeply personal and emotionally sincere. Richa Srivastava does not write from a distance. She places the reader inside her own spiritual journey and shares incidents that have clearly had a lasting effect on her life. The autobiographical form gives the book honesty, while the supernatural experiences create curiosity and wonder. What impressed me most was the author’s confidence in presenting unusual events without turning the narrative into fantasy. She remains committed to her truth and allows readers to form their own understanding. The book also shows how devotion can become a source of strength, direction, and emotional support. Its language is accessible, and the subject has the ability to connect with both spiritual readers and those interested in real-life experiences. In my view, the book deserves recognition for its originality, courage, and personal depth. It is a memorable contribution to contemporary spiritual non-fiction.
Roxana Jaffer
Lord Shiva – The “Intense” Lover is a compelling account of faith, personal experience, and inner transformation. While reading it, I felt that the author was speaking directly to the reader rather than simply presenting a series of events. Richa Srivastava shares her experiences with openness, and this gives the book an intimate and believable quality. The incidents may surprise readers, but the emotional reactions described around them feel genuine and human. The book also raises important questions about the place of spirituality in the modern world. It reminds us that devotion can be deeply personal and may reveal itself in ways that cannot always be explained through ordinary logic. I appreciated the balance between autobiography and spiritual reflection. The book maintains interest because each chapter adds another layer to the author’s relationship with Lord Shiva. I support its selection because it offers a fresh voice, a distinctive subject, and a sincere message about faith, courage, and trust.
Apeksha Gupta
What stands out in Lord Shiva – The “Intense” Lover is the author’s willingness to share experiences that many people might hesitate to discuss publicly. Richa Srivastava writes with conviction and presents her spiritual journey as a real and important part of her life. This honesty creates a strong bond between the author and the reader. The book is not merely a record of supernatural incidents. It is also a reflection on devotion, emotional strength, personal challenges, and the influence of faith on everyday life. I found the narrative engaging because it continuously creates curiosity about what will happen next. At the same time, it encourages the reader to think about belief without forcing a particular conclusion. The author’s professional background as a counsellor, motivational speaker, entrepreneur, and writer also adds maturity to her observations. I believe the book deserves this award because it is original, brave, spiritually meaningful, and capable of leaving a lasting impression on readers from different backgrounds.
Asha Seth
Reading Lord Shiva – The “Intense” Lover was an unusual and thought-provoking experience. The book presents devotion not as an abstract idea but as something active in the author’s personal life. Richa Srivastava has written an autobiography that carries mystery, emotion, and spiritual intensity. Her experiences are narrated with simplicity, which helps the reader remain connected even when the incidents appear extraordinary. I especially valued the book’s emotional honesty. The author does not try to impress the reader through complicated language. Instead, she focuses on what she experienced, how it affected her, and how her devotion to Lord Shiva continued to guide her. This direct approach gives the work its strength. The book may encourage spiritual readers, but it can also interest anyone who enjoys true stories that challenge ordinary understanding. In my opinion, its selection is justified because it offers a rare combination of personal truth, spiritual reflection, reader engagement, and literary courage. It is both inspiring and memorable.
Neel Preet
Lord Shiva – The “Intense” Lover has a distinctive identity within spiritual and autobiographical writing. The book does not feel like a general discussion of religion. It is centred on one woman’s lived relationship with Lord Shiva and the extraordinary incidents connected with that devotion. Richa Srivastava’s voice remains confident throughout, and this confidence gives the narrative energy. I was particularly interested in the way the book creates suspense while staying rooted in personal experience. The reader is repeatedly encouraged to question how such events could occur in the present age. This sense of wonder is one of the book’s strongest qualities. Another valuable feature is its message that faith can support a person through confusion, difficulty, and change. The author’s achievements as a writer, motivational speaker, counsellor, and entrepreneur show that her spiritual identity exists alongside a highly active professional life. I consider the book worthy of recognition because it is sincere, original, engaging, and capable of opening meaningful conversations about faith and experience.
Deepak Seth
In Lord Shiva – The “Intense” Lover, Richa Srivastava transforms deeply personal memories into a narrative with wider emotional and spiritual value. The book succeeds because the author does not separate her faith from her life story. Her devotion becomes the central thread that connects the real incidents, supernatural experiences, emotional responses, and lessons found throughout the work. I found the book easy to follow and difficult to put aside because it continually builds curiosity. The author’s statement that the events are real, with only the names changed, gives every chapter an added sense of importance. Readers may interpret the experiences differently, but they are likely to respect the courage required to share them. The work also reflects the author’s wider purpose as a counsellor and motivational speaker, since it encourages readers to remain hopeful and open to possibilities beyond immediate understanding. I support the committee’s decision because the book demonstrates originality, conviction, emotional impact, and a meaningful contribution to modern non-fiction literature.
