The Kerala Sahitya Akademi or Academy for Malayalam Literature is an autonomous body established to promote the Malayalam language and literature. It is situated in the city of Thrissur, Kerala in India.
Raja Ravi Varma was an Indian painter and artist. His works are one of the best examples of the fusion of European academic art with a purely Indian sensibility and iconography. Especially, he was notable for making affordable lithographs of his paintings available to the public, which greatly enhanced his reach and influence as a painter and public figure. His lithographs increased the involvement of common people with fine arts and defined artistic tastes among the common people. Furthermore, his religious depictions of Hindu deities and works from Indian epic poetry and Puranas have received profound acclaim. He was part of the royal family of erstwhile Parappanad, Malappuram district.
T. K. Padmini was an Indian painter from the south India state of Kerala. A recipient of multiple awards from the Chennai centre of the Lalit Kala Akademi, she was one of the prominent Indian woman painters. Her paintings have been displayed at The National Art Gallery, Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad and the Durbar Hall Ground Art Gallery of Kerala Lalithakala Akademi. She died on 11 May 1969 at the age of 29.
Kanayi Kunhiraman is an Indian sculptor, best known for his outsize sculptures such as Yakshi of Malampuzha Dam Gardens, Sagarakanyaka at Shankumugham Beach and Mukkola Perumal trinity in Kochi. Taught by K. C. S. Paniker, he is a former chairman of the Lalit Kala Academy, India's national academy of fine arts. The Government of Kerala awarded him the inaugural Raja Ravi Varma Award in 2005. He is also a recipient of the Thikkurissy Award and the inaugural MS Nanjunda Rao National Award of the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath. In 2022, he was honoured with Kerala Sree Award, third highest civilian award given by the Government of Kerala.
Sugathakumari was an Indian poet and activist, who was at the forefront of environmental and feminist movements in Kerala, India.
C. N. Karunakaran was an Indian painter, illustrator and art director from Kerala. He was the Chairman of the Kerala Lalitakala Academy and a recipient of several honours including the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi Award which he won thrice. The Akademi honoured him again with the fellowship in 2005.
Madathil Vasudevan, popularly identified as M. V. Devan, was an Indian painter, sculptor, writer, art critic and orator. Besides his artistic works, he was also known for his architectural designs for a number of cultural institutions as well as for his contributions in founding Kerala Kalapeetom, Kochi-based cultural organization, Malayala Kalagramam, an art village in New Mahe and Kalagramam, another art village in Kollam. A former chairman of the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi, he was a recipient of several honours including the Raja Ravi Varma Puraskaram of the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi, the Vayalar Award and the Mathrubhumi Literary Award.
Karuvattu Mana Vasudevan Namboothiri, better known as Artist Namboothiri or simply Namboothiri, was an Indian painter and sculptor, known for his line art and copper relief works. He illustrated for many Malayalam writers such as Thakazhy Shivasankara Pillai, Kesavadev, M. T. Vasudevan Nair, Uroob, S. K. Pottekkatt, Edasseri Govindan Nair, and V.K.N., and was one of the most prolific literary illustrators of India. He was also a chairman of the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi. The Akademi awarded him the Raja Ravi Varma Award in 2003. He was also a recipient of the Kerala State Film Award for Best Art Director.
Attoor Ravi Varma was an Indian poet and translator of Malayalam literature. One of the pioneers of modern Malayalam poetry, Ravi Varma is a recipient of Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award, Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Poetry and Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Translation, besides many other honours. The Government of Kerala honoured him with their highest literary award, the Ezhuthachan Puraskaram, in 2012 and the Kerala Sahitya Akademi inducted him as their distinguished fellow in 2017.
Akkitham Narayanan is a Paris-based Indian painter from Kerala. A student of such artists as K. C. S. Paniker, D. P. Roy Choudhury and Jean Bertholle, Narayanan's paintings are on display at various museums and galleries in many countries such as India, France, Japan, Poland and Germany. He is a three time recipient of the Tamil Nadu State Lalit Kala Akademi Award, Raja Ravi Varma Award of the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi and the Cagnes-sur-Mer International Festival of Painting Award.
T.A.S Menon is former principal of the Raja Ravi Varma College of Fine Arts Mavelikara, Kerala, India. He is a former executive member of the Kerala Lalita Kala Akademi, former jury member of the Raja Ravi Varma Award, former executive member of the Kerala Kalamandalam, Examination board chief of the institute of Mural painting, and a patron of the Narendra Prasad foundation.
The Ezhuthachan Puraskaram is the highest literary honour is given by the Kerala Sahitya Akademi, Government of Kerala. The award is named after Thunchaththu Ezhuthachan, the father of the Malayalam language and consists of a cash prize of ₹ 5,00,000 and a citation. The prize money was enhanced by ₹ 50,000 in 2011. The award was instituted in 1993 and Sooranad Kunjan Pillai was its first recipient.
Prabha Varma is a poet, lyricist, journalist and television presenter known for his works in Malayalam cinema. He has published ten collections of poems, three novels in verse, six books on the contemporary socio-political milieu and literature, six collections of essays in criticism, a study on media, a travelogue and a novel in English.
Balan Nambiar is an Indian painter, sculptor, enamellist, photographer and an academic researcher.
Kalamandalam V. Satyabhama was an Indian classical dancer, teacher and choreographer, known for her performances and scholarship in Mohiniyattam. She was awarded the Padma Shri, in 2014, for her contributions to the art and culture, by the Government of India.
Sunil P. Ilayidom is an Indian writer, critic, orator and university professor in Malayalam language. He writes and lectures on politics, literature, art and culture. He has received the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi and is a two-time recipient of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award.
Raja Ravi Varma Art gallery is set up by the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi at Kilimanoor, the birthplace of the renowned painter Raja Ravi Varma.It displays nearly 50 paintings of Raja Ravi Varma.It is now permanently closed.
Parassala B. Ponnammal was an Indian Carnatic musician from the south Indian state of Kerala. She was a classical carnatic vocalist in the lineage of Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, Muthiah Bhagavathar, and Papanasam Sivan. She was the first woman to perform at the Navaratri Mandapam in Thiruvananthapuram as a part of the Navaratri Celebrations of the Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple in Kerala.
T.R. Udayakumar is an Indian contemporary artist living in Kottayam, Kerala.
B. D. Dethan is an Indian painter from the state of Kerala. A recipient of several awards and Kerala Lalithakala Akademi Fellowship 2007, he was a member of the executive committee of Kerala Lalithakala Akademi thrice. His paintings are featured in several private and public collections in India and abroad including, the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi; Parliament House, New Delhi; Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi and Raj Bhavan, Thiruvananthapuram. The Government of Kerala awarded him Raja Ravi Varma Puraskaram for his achievements in the field of visual arts in 2019.
