Shrilal Shukla (31 December 1925 – 28 October 2011) was a Hindi writer, notable for his satire. He worked as a PCS officer for the state government of Uttar Pradesh, later inducted into the IAS. He has written over 25 books, including Raag Darbari, Makaan, Sooni Ghaati Ka Sooraj, Pehla Padaav and Bisrampur Ka Sant.
Shukla has highlighted the falling moral values in the Indian society in the post independence era through his novels. His writings expose the negative aspects of life in rural and urban India in a satirical manner. His best known work Raag Darbari has been translated into English and 15 Indian languages. A television serial based on this continued for several months on the national network in the 1980s. It is a little-known fact that he also wrote a detective novel entitled Aadmi Ka Zahar which was serialised in the weekly magazine 'Hindustan'.
Shukla received the Jnanpith Award, the highest Indian literary award, in 2011. His first major award was the Sahitya Akademi Award for his novel Raag Darbari in 1969. He received the Vyas Samman award in 1999 for the novel Bisrampur ka Sant. In 2008, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the President of India for his contribution to Indian literature and culture. On his 80th birthday in December 2005, his friends, peers, family and fans organised a literary and cultural event in New Delhi. To mark the occasion, a volume titled Shrilal Shukla – Jeevan Hi Jeevan was issued about him. This contains the writings of eminent literary personalities such as Dr. Naamvar Singh, Rajendra Yadav, Ashok Bajpai, Doodhnath Singh, Nirmala Jain, Leeladhar Jagudi, Gillian Wright, Kunwar Narayan and Raghuvir Sahay among others. His friends, family and fans also contributed to the book.
1925 – Born in village Atrauli in Mohanlalganj, Lucknow district of Uttar Pradesh
1947 – Graduated from Allahabad University
1949 – Entry into the Civil Service
1957 – First novel Sooni Ghaati Ka Sooraj published
1958 – First collection of satire Angad Ka Paanv published
1970 – Awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award for Raag Darbari (for 1969)
1978 – Awarded the Madhya Pradesh Hindi Sahitya Parishad Award for Makaan
1979–80 – Served as Director of the Bhartendu Natya Academy, Uttar Pradesh
1981 – Represented India at the International Writers' Meet in Belgrade
1982–86 – Member of the Advisory Board of the Sahitya Akademi
1983 – Retirement from the Indian Administrative Service
1987–90 – Awarded the Emeritus Fellowship by the ICCR, Government of India
1988 – Given the Sahitya Bhushan Award by Uttar Pradesh Hindi Sansthaan
1991 – Awarded the Goyal Sahitya Puraskaar by Kurukshetra University
1994 – Awarded the Lohia Sammaan by Uttar Pradesh Hindi Sansthaan