Sachchidananda Hirananda Vatsyayan (7 March 1911 – 4 April 1987), popularly known by his pen name Agyeya (also transliterated Ajneya, meaning 'the unknowable'), was an Indian writer, poet, novelist, literary critic, journalist, translator and revolutionary in Hindi language.

Son of a renowned archaeologist Hiranand Sastri, Agyeya was born in Kasia, a small town near Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh.

Agyeya was born as Sachchidananda Vatsyayan in Punjabi Brahmin family on 7 March 1911 in an archaeological camp near Kasia, Kushinagar district of Uttar Pradesh, where his father, Hiranand Sastri, an archaeologist, was positioned for an excavation.

In the same year, he joined the Forman Christian College in Lahore, where he studied Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and English, and received a Bachelor of Science in 1929, standing first in a class.

in English, but dropped out, and joined the Hindustan Socialist Republican Army (HSRA), a revolutionary organisation, with a view to fight for Indian independence movement, and participated in rebellious activities against the British colonial government.

In November 1930, he was arrested on account of his involvement in the attempt to help Bhagat Singh, a socialist revolutionary and leader of HSRA, to escape from jail in 1929.

During these prison days, he started writing short stories, poems and the first draft of his novel Shekhar: Ek Jivani.

[citation needed] In 1961, he joined the University of California, Berkeley as a visiting lecturer in Indian Literature and Civilization, and remained there until June 1964.

When the members of the Hungry generation or Bhookhi Peerhi movement were arrested and prosecuted for their anti-establishment writings, Agyeya through Dinmaan relentlessly supported the young literary group of Culcutta till they were exonerated.

[citation needed] During the four years in prison, Agyeya started writing short stories and published them in Hans, edited by Premchand.

[11][12] Novels: Stories anthologies: Play: Travelogue: Criticism: Light Essyas: Diary: Memoirs: Edited: Introducing: Conversations: In English: Selection (general): Sanchayita (Ed Nand Kishore Acharya) Translations: Self-translated works: Translations in other languages: (Indian languages list too long) Films on Ajneya: Agyeya was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1964 for his collection of poems Angan Ke Par Dwar, and the Jnanpith Award in 1978 for Kitni Naavon Mein Kitni Baar.

[17] His verse play Uttar Priyadarshi, about the redemption of King Ashoka was first staged in 1966 at Triveni open-air theatre in Delhi in presence of the writer.

Later it was adapted to Manipuri, by theatre director, Ratan Thiyam in 1996, and since been performed by his group, in various parts of the world.