The Nrupatunga Award is an award for excellence in Kannada literature in the Indian state of Karnataka. The award was instituted by the Kannada Sahitya Parishat and is sponsored by the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC). Instituted in honor of the Rashtrakuta King Nrupatunga Amoghavarsha I, the award carries a purse of ₹700,001. King Nrupatunga finds an important place in the history of India in general and Karnataka in particular for his patronage and contribution to the Kannada language in the 9th century.

Malleshappa Madivalappa Kalburgi was an Indian scholar of Vachana sahitya in the Kannada-language and academic who served as the vice-chancellor of Kannada University in Hampi. A noted epigraphist of Kannada, he was awarded the National Sahitya Akademi Award in 2006 for Marga 4, a collection of his research articles.