K. Satchidanandan is an Indian poet and critic, writing in Malayalam and English. A pioneer of modern poetry in Malayalam, a bilingual literary critic, playwright, editor, columnist and translator, he is the former editor of Indian Literature journal and the former secretary of Sahitya Akademi. He is also social advocate for secular anti-caste views, supporting causes like environment, human rights and free software and is a well known speaker on issues concerning contemporary Indian literature. He is the festival director of Kerala Literature Festival.
VaikomMuhammad Basheer, popularly referred to as Beypore Sulthan, was an Indian writer of Malayalam literature, a humanist and an Indian independence activist. He was a novelist and short story writer noted for his path-breaking, down-to-earth style of writing that made him equally popular among literary critics as well as the common man. His notable works include Balyakalasakhi, Shabdangal, Pathummayude Aadu, Ntuppuppakkoranendarnnu, Mathilukal, Janmadinam and Anargha Nimisham and the translations of his works into other languages have earned him worldwide acclaim. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honor of the Padma Shri in 1982. He was also a recipient of the Sahitya Academy Fellowship, Kerala Sahitya Academy Fellowship, and the Kerala State Film Award for Best Story. He was a recipient of the Vallathol Award in 1993.
Menacherry Poulose Paul (1904–1952) was an academic, educationist, scholar and literary critic of Malayalam. Considered by many as one of the major literary critics of Malayalam literature, Paul inaugurated comparative literature in Malayalam through his works, Novel Sahithyam and Cherukatha Prasthanam. He was the founder of parallel college education system in Kerala, one of the major forces behind the Purogamana Sahitya Prasthanam and was the founder president of Sahithya Pravrthaka Sahakarana Sangham, the writers' cooperative movement.
Kandanisseri Vattamparambil Velappan Ayyappan or V. V. Ayyappan, better known by his pen name Kovilan, was an Indian Malayalam language novelist and freedom fighter from Kerala. He is considered one of the most prolific writers of contemporary Indian literature. In all, he had authored 11 novels, 10 collections of short stories, three essays and a play.
P. Kunjanandan Nair, better known by his pseudonym, Thikkodiyan, was an Indian playwright, novelist, lyricist and screenwriter of Malayalam. He was known for his contributions to the genre of radio plays and his autobiography, Arangu Kaanatha Nadan, which detailed the socio-cultural development of Malabar in the post-independent period, fetched him a number of awards including the Kendra Sahithya Academy Award, Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Biography and Autobiography, Vayalar Award and the Odakkuzhal Award.
N. P. Mohammed, popularly known by his initials N. P., was an Indian novelist, short story writer and screenwriter of Malayalam language. Along with his contemporaries like M. T. Vasudevan Nair, O. V. Vijayan, Kakkanadan, and Madhavikutty, he was known to have been one of the pioneers of modernist movement in Malayalam fiction. He was the president of Kerala Sahitya Akademi and a recipient of several awards including Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award, Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Story, Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Novel, Lalithambika Antharjanam Award, Padmaprabha Literary Award and the Muttathu Varkey Award.
Kudiyirikkal Narayanan Ezhuthachan was an Indian writer and scholar of Malayalam literature. He was one among the principal followers of the idea of social impact on literature. Ezhuthachan supported Marxist literary criticism and interpreted Indian literary works based on Marxist aesthetics. He won the Sahitya Akademi Award for his work Keralodayam, a long narrative poem written in Sanskrit. He is the first Malayali to win Sahitya Akademi Award in Sanskrit. He died on 28 October 1981 while delivering a lecture at Calicut University.
M. M. Basheer is a Malayalam literary critic who has written more than forty critical works on Malayalam poetry, short stories and novels. He has also been awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award Fellowship of 2022.
Mundanat Leelavathy is a Malayalam writer, literary critic and educationist. She taught at various colleges in Kerala before retiring as Principal from Government Brennen College, Thalassery. During her long literary career, she won several awards including Sahitya Akademi Award and Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award. She is a contemporary of such noted critics in Malayalam including K. M. George, S. Guptan Nair, N. Krishna Pillai, P. K. Balakrishnan, M. K. Sanu and Sukumar Azhikode. Leelavathy is a recipient of the Padma Shri Award.
Cheviyorkkuka! Anthimakahalam is a book by Vaikom Muhammad Basheer published in 1992. The book includes the speech given by Basheer on the occasion of being conferred the Doctor of Letters by University of Calicut on 19 January 1987. It was the last book of Basheer published during his lifetime.
Malappurath Raman Chandrasekharan, popularly known as M.R. Chandrasekharan or simply M. R. C., is a Malayalam literary critic and author from Kerala, India. Chandrasekharan has published more than 50 books in different literary sections like literary criticism, translations, politics, social etc. He also works in the field of journalism and education. He won the 2010 Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Literary Criticism.
Ronald Eaton Asher was a British linguist and educator specialised in Dravidian languages. He was a fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland (1964), a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (1991), and an honorary fellow of the Sahitya Akademi.
Joseph Raphael, better identified as Ponjikkara Rafi, was an Indian essayist, playwright, short story writer and a novelist of Malayalam literature. His oeuvre consists of short story anthologies, novels, philosophical works and screenplays but he is best remembered for two novels, Daivadhoothan, regarded as the first Malayalam novel written in stream of consciousness narrative style, and Ora Pro Nobis, a historical novel based on the Dutch colonial rule. He was also the author of Kaliyugam, a philosophical work jointly written with his wife, Sabeena Rafi, which fetched him the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Miscellaneous Works in 1972.
B. Rajeevan is a Malayalam author and literary critic from Kerala, India.
Thayat Kunjananthan, commonly known as K. Thayat was an Indian writer of children's literature and plays in Malayalam–language. He has written 42 books and over a hundred radio plays. He was also a school teacher and has received various awards in the field of literature as well as central and state awards for excellence in teaching.
V. Anil Kumar popularly known as Anil Vallathol is a Malayalam language writer and academic from Kerala, India. Anil hails from the family of the poet Vallathol Narayana Menon.
M. Thomas Mathew is an Indian literary critic, orator, translator and academic who writes in Malayalam language. He has written a number of books on literary criticism such as Dhanthagopurathilekku Veendum, Ente Valmeekamevide, Ashante Seethayanam and Athmavinte Murivukal and has translated works into Malayalam which includes New Humanism written by M. N. Roy. He is a recipient of several honours including Sahitya Akademi Award, Vayalar Award and Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Literary Criticism.
K. P. Sankaran is a Malayalam–language literary critic from Kerala, India. Born on 15 May 1939 in Painkulam in Trichur district of the erstwhile Kingdom of Cochin, he was a teacher at Changanacherry S.B. College, Trichur Kerala Varma College and Mysore Regional Institute of Education from where he retired in 2001. He resides with his wife Kamala Devi in Kottapparambu near Chelavoor, Calicut since 2019. He has authored around 30 books.
Erumeli Parameswaran Pillai was a Malayalam-language writer, teacher, scholar, and literary critic from Kerala, India. He wrote over forty books, including five novels, four collections of stories, 11 scholarly works, and a few one-act plays and children's literature. He is also known for the work Malayala Sahityam Kalaghattangaliloode, a comprehensive history of Malayalam literature. He received the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Overall Contributions in 2009.
Thayat Sankaran was a writer, journalist, literary critic, politician and independence activist from Kerala, India. Born on 5 August 1924 in Panniyannur near Tellicherry, Sankaran started his career as a teacher. He worked at Ganapath High School, Calicut for ten years. Then, he got his MA degree and became a teacher at the university level. He worked with the Indian National Congress and later in Praja Party and Praja Socialist Party before joining the Communist Party of India (Marxist). He was the editor of Viplavam, a left-leaning weekly newspaper published from Calicut. Thayat resigned from Viplavam following his controversial writings on the death of Naxal Varghese. During 1982–85, he was the editor of Deshabhimani Weekly. Thayat boldly expressed his opinions in literature and politics regardless of anyone's opposition. He was associated with the Kerala Granthasala Sangham and Purogamana Kala Sahitya Sangham. He published several books. His work Manasikamaya Adimatham received the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Literary Criticism in 1968. He died on 23 March 1983 at Tata Memorial Hospital, Bombay.
