Usha Rani Rao is an educationist, translator, poet, literary critic, and Professor of Hindi. She heads the Department of Hindi at Baldwin Women's Methodist College, Bengaluru.

She has authored three poetry collections, two books on literary criticism, and four translated works, besides publishing over 75 research papers. Her acclaimed Hindi translation of Girish Karnad's autobiography, Khel Khel Mein Beeta Jeevan, is a significant contribution to Indian literature.

A recipient of several prestigious literary honours, Dr. Rao continues to strengthen the literary and cultural bridge between Hindi and Kannada through her teaching, research, and translations.