M. R. Ramakrishna Panikkar (22 March 1935 – 31 March 2008), popularly known as Kadammanitta Ramakrishnan or Kadammanitta, was an Indian poet. He was born in

Kadammanitta Kadammanitta is a village in Pathanamthitta District, Kerala, India which is famous for Padayani. See also * Padayani * Vazhamuttom * Thazhoor Bhagavathy Kshetram Thazhoor Bhagavathy Kshetram, ( ml, താഴൂര് ഭഗവതി ക� ...

province of

Pathanamthitta Pathanamthitta (), is a municipality situated in the Central Travancore region in the state of Kerala, India, spread over an area of 23.50 km2. It is the administrative capital of Pathanamthitta district. The town has a population of 37 ...

district,

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

. His childhood experiences, especially the

Patayani Padayani, also known Padeni (from the Malayalam word for military formations), is a traditional folk dance and a ritual art from the central portion of the Indian state of Kerala. A ceremonial dance involving masks, it is an ancient ritual per ...

songs, had a strong influence on his literary work."പടയണിശീലും കടമ്മനിട്ട കവിതയും നഗരം ശ്രവിച്ചപ്പോള്"
. ''

Mathrubhumi ''Mathrubhumi'' is a Malayalam newspaper that is published from Kerala, India. It was founded by K. P. Kesava Menon, an active volunteer in the Indian independence movement, Indian freedom struggle against the British Raj, British. The word "M ...

''. 3 September 2013. Retrieved 18 April 2014.

Early life

Ramakrishnan was born on 22 March 1935 to Meletharayil Raman Nair and Kuttiyamma. He completed schooling at his home village of

and at the nearby town of

. He was influenced by the traditional religious art form of

even from his childhood. After his degree studies, he went to

Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...

and then reached

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

. He was employed with the Postal Audits and Accounts department in 1959. He worked in

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

from 1967 until his retirement in 1992.

Literary life

Ramakrishnan's poem ''Njan'' was published in 1965 in

M. Govindan Mancherath Thazhathethil Govindan (1919–1989) was an Indian writer of Malayalam literature and a cultural activist from Kerala, India. He was known for his writings as well as for his efforts in assisting Anand to publish his debut novel, ''Aa ...

's ''Sameeksha'' magazine. Kadammanitta played a role in reviving interest in poetry by holding thousands of recital sessions in every nook and corner of Kerala in the 1970s and 80s. His work has been widely appreciated for its force, energy, and folk touch, and his work gave a mass appeal and popularity making poetry enjoyable even to commonman. Ramakrishnan's close association with literary and cultural luminaries, which included

Ayyappa Paniker Dr. K. Ayyappa Paniker, sometimes spelt "Ayyappa Panicker" (12 September 1930 – 23 August 2006), was a Malayalam poet, literary critic, and an academic and a scholar in modern and post-modern literary theories as well as ancient Indian aesthe ...

M. V. Devan Madathil Vasudevan, popularly identified as M. V. Devan (15 January 1928 – 29 April 2014), was an Indian Painting, painter, sculptor, writer, art critic and orator. Besides his artistic works, he was also known for his architectural design ...

P. K. Balakrishnan Panikkassery Keshavan Balakrishnan (March 2, 1925 – April 3, 1991) was an Indian novelist and critic. A doyen of Malayalam literature, he is best known for his novel, '' Ini Njan Urangatte'' (''And now, Let me Sleep''), a novel based on Maha ...

O. N. V. Kurup Ottaplakkal Neelakandan Velu Kurup (known as O. N. V. Kurup; 27 May 1931 – 13 February 2016) was a Malayalam poet and lyricist from Kerala, India, who won the Jnanpith Award, the highest literary award in India for the year 2007. He receive ...

Kavalam Narayana Panicker Kavalam Narayana Panicker (1 May 1928 – 26 June 2016) was an Indian dramatist, theatre director, and poet. He has written over 26 Malayalam plays, many adapted from classical Sanskrit drama and Shakespeare, notably Kalidasa's ''Vikramorvasiy ...

, D.Vinayachandran, and K. V. Thampi, helped him in the endeavour to give a popular image to Malayalam poetry recital. He had recited his fiery works at thousands of venues all over the state, besides editing a poetry journal ''Kerala Kavitha'' that attempted to take the essence of poetry from the academic cloisters to the realms of everyday life.

Other activities

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

, he was involved with the student federation as well as communist party during his college days. In 1992, he became the vice president of CPI-M's cultural wing,

Purogamana Kala Sahitya Sangham Purogamana Kala Sahitya Sangham (Progressive Arts & Literary Organisation) an Association for Art and Letters, also known as the PuKaSa, is an organization of artists, writers and art and literature enthusiasts based in Kerala. The association was f ...

(Progressive Association for Art and Letters), and in 2002 its president. In 1996, he was elected to Kerala state legislative assembly from

Aranmula Aranmula is a temple town in the state of Kerala, India. It is known as the cultural capital of Pathanamthitta district, located at a distance of around 116 km from Trivandrum, the capital of Kerala, it is situated on the banks of the ...

constituency in

district. He was still continuing as the President of Purogamana Kala Sahithya Sangham when he died.

Death

Ramakrishnan died at 9 o'clock in the morning of 31 March 2008 at M.G.M. Memorial Medical Centre in

, nine days after celebrating his 73rd birthday. He had been undergoing treatment for

myeloid leukaemia Myeloid leukemia is a type of leukemia affecting myeloid tissue. Types include: * Acute myeloid leukemia * Chronic myelogenous leukemia * Acute megakaryoblastic leukemia * Blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm See also * Hematological m ...

for the past three months. He was survived by his wife, Santha, daughter, Geetha Devi, and son, Geetha Krishnan."Kadammanitta Ramakrishnan dead"
''The Hindu''. 1 April 2008. Retrieved 8 July 2013. He was cremated with full state honours at the premises of his home in his birth village, after which he was called more.

Major works

* ''Kurathi''Archived a
Ghostarchive
and th
Wayback Machine
* ''Kadinjool Pottan'' * ''Misrathalam'' * ''Mazha Peyyunnu Maddhalam Kottunnu'' * ''Kadammanittayude Kavithakal'' * ''Vellivelicham'' * ''Sooryasila'' * ''Shantha'' * ''Kuppayilundoru Maanikyam'' * ''Ee Poochayaanente Dukham'' * ''Kunje Mulappaal Kudikkaruth''

Awards

Kerala Sahithya Akademi Award Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award is given each year, since 1958, by the Kerala Sahitya Akademi (Kerala Literary Academy), to Malayalam writers for their outstanding books of literary merit. The awards are given in various categories.

1982 (Kadammanittayude Kavithakal) * Asan Prize 1995 (Kadammanittayude Kavithakal) * Abu Dhabi Malayalam Samajam Award * New York Malayalam International Foundation Award * Muscat Kerala Samskarika Kendram Award * Basheer Puraskaram (2004) * Mahakavi Pandalam Keralavarma Poetry Award(2006)

References

External links

Kadammanitta Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramakrishnan, Kadammanitta Malayalam-language writers Malayalam poets People from Pathanamthitta 1935 births 2008 deaths Recipients of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award 20th-century Indian poets Kerala MLAs 1996–2001 Indian male poets Poets from Kerala Deaths from cancer in India People from Aranmula 20th-century Indian male writers