MT VASUDEVAN NAIR

MT VASUDEVAN NAIR

Madathil Thekkepaattu Vasudevan Nair (മഠത്തില്‍ തെക്കെപാട്ട് വാസുദേവന്‍ നായര്‍) MT, is an Indian author, screenplay writer and film director He was born in Kudallur a small village in the present day  Palakkad District. He is one of the most prolific and versatile writers in modern Malayalam literature. In 2005, India's third highest civilian honour Padma Bhushan was awarded to him. He was awarded the highest literary award in India Jnanpith for his work Randamoozham

He spent his early days in Punayurkulam village of present day Thrissur. He occupied and continues to occupy many important and powerful positions in various literary bodies including the presidentship of Kerala Sahithya Akademi and the chairmanship of Tunchan Memorial Trust. The  Library of Congress has in its collection sixty-two books, mostly by M.T and some on him. Also, some of them are translations of his works into English. He acted as the Chief Editor of the weekly  Mathrubhumiand as the editor of the Mathrubhumi periodicals. He has also served as a faculty in the  Film and Television Institute,Pune.. On the 2 June 1996, he was bestowed with honourary D.Lit degree by the Calicut University. He is married twice. His second wife is the dance artist Kalamandalam Saraswathi with whom he has a daughter.

   He was born on 15th july 1933 in Kudallur, a small village in Palakkad district, Kerala. He rose to eminence through his well-crafted novels and short stories in Malayalam whose romantic poignancy and tender portrayal of the human condition endeared the author to his readers. He captured in subtle detail the pain and anguish that marked the ebb of feudalism in Kerala in many of his novels. A master storyteller, M.T made his way up to be honored with the highest literary award the nation confers on a writer, the Jnanpith in 1995. Prior to that, he had received many awards and accolades like both state and center Sahitya Akademi Awards. He occupied and continues to occupy many important and powerful positions in various literary bodies including the presidentship of Kerala Sahitya Akademi and the chairmanship of Tunchan Memorial Trust. The Library of Congress has in its collection sixty-two books, mostly by M.T and some on him. Also, some of them are translations of his works into English. Novelist and Film Maker M.T. Vasudevan Nair and journalist N.P. Damodaran during the shashtipoorthy celebrations of Edasseri in Ponani, in the year 1966. M.T. Vasudevan Nair has been the Editor of Mathrubhoomi Weekly for over two decades.

The essence of his work is self-suffering and its emotional intensity and rhythms of love hold the readers sticking to him.The story of Koodalloor village and Bharathapuzha are the most repeated and favourite themes of M.T. Most of his stories show the wretched state of the Nair families 'Nalukettu', 'Kaalam', 'Asuravithu', 'Manju', 'Randamoozham', 'Vilapayathra', 'Arabipponnu'(written with N.P. Muhammed), 'Pathiravum Pakal Velichavum' are his novels. Around 18 short story collections are in his name of which the most important are 'Olavum Theeravum','Kutyedathi', 'Ninte Ormakku', 'Nashtapetta Dinangal', 'Iruttinte Aatmavu', 'Varikkuzhi', 'Dar-s-Salaam, 'Swargam Thurakkunna Samayam'. He acted as the Chief Editor of the weekly Mathrubhumi and as the editor of the Mathrubhumi periodicals. Won the Jnanapeedam award in 1996. On the 2nd of June 1996 he was bestowed with honourary D.Lit degree by the Calicut University. 'Randamoozham' bagged the Vayalar award in 1985. 'Swargam Thurakkunna Samayam' bagged the Kerala Sahithya Academy award in 1986. 'Kalam' gained the Kendra Sahithya Academy in 1970 and 'Nalukettu' the Kerala Sahithya Academy award. M.T. also gained the Padmarajan prize for short story. The films 'Nirmalyam', 'Bandhanam', 'Varikkuzhi', 'Manju' and 'Kadavu' were written and directed by him. Of these 'Nirmalyam' had gained the national award for best film. The other four movies bagged the state awards. Bagged the award for best screenplay writer several times.

His first short stories, written in his native language, Malayalam, were published in several magazines while he was a youth. The young author’s first volume of narratives came out in 1952. His debut novel »Nalukettu« (1958; Eng. »The Ancestral House«,1959) won him the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award in 1959. The National Book Trust made it possible for him to have the book translated into all the official languages of India. Since then he has written about ten more novels, including »Asuravithu« (1962; Eng. »The Demon Seed and Other Writings«,1998), »Manju« (1964; t: Snow) and »Kaalam« (1969; Eng. »Kaalam«, 1998). He has also published some twenty volumes of short stories, as well as travelogues, literary essays and children’s books. He has been honoured with the Jnanpith Award, the most prestigious Indian literary award, and numerous other accolades. But M. T. Vasudevan Nair has not only made a reputation for himself as an author and long time editor of the influential weekly literary magazine »Mathrubhumi«, but also as the prize winning script writer and director of Malayalam movies. His cinema work includes more than forty film scripts, and the direction of six feature films, three documentaries and one TV series. His literary and cinematographic oevres focus on rural south Indian society. British colonialism and the independence of India led to fundamental changes of traditional matrilineal structures in the northern Kerala (Nair) communities. M. T. Vasudevan Nair is considered the principal chronicler of the breakdown of the family system. Many narratives draw from the history of Kudallur, Nair’s home village, which is characterised by the dissolving of feudal structures and values. Nair uses a concise and lyrical language to depict the correlation between conditions of society and the anxieties and emotional involvements of his characters. This is true also in his novel »Randamoozham« (1984; Eng. »Second Turn«, 1997) which is based on the Indian epic »Mahabharata«. Nair’s respectful recreation of the classic is told from the point of view of the war hero Bhima, who gains, through the author’s ironic undertones, a new psychological depth. »I have not changed the framework of the story by the first Vyasa, Krishna-Dwaipayana. I have read between his lines and expanded on his pregnant silences.« M. T. Vasudevan Nair lives in Calicut/Kerala, India. MT had won the Kerala Sahitya Academy Awards for his novel Nalukettu in 1958; drama, Gopura Nadayil in 1982 and short story, Swargam Thurakkunna Samayam in 1986. He had also been conferred with the Kendra Sahitya Academy Award for his novel Kaalam in 1970.  

                                                           Prof. John Kurakar