Prof. Kadammanitta Vasudevan Pillai, is a

Padayani 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 ...

exponent from

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 ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. He is the former Vice Chairman of the

Kerala Folklore Academy Kerala Folklore Academy is an autonomous center for cultural affairs constituted by the Government of Kerala and works under the Department of Cultural Affairs. It was established on 28 June 1995 to promote and project the traditional art forms ...

, a professor in mathematics, a writer and public speaker.

Early and professional life

Vasudevan Pillai was born to M. R. Ramakrishna Pillai (late) and Parukutty Amma (late), at a small village called

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� ...

Pathanamthitta district Pathanamthitta District (), is one of the 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala. The district headquarters is in the town of Pathanamthitta. There are four municipalities in Pathanamthitta: Adoor, Pandalam, Pathanamthitta and Thiruvalla ...

on 24 May 1947. His only sister is Omana Kumariamma. From childhood itself, he was interested in

and

Kerala folklore 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 Cana ...

. He completed his pre-school and graduated from Catholicate College in Pathanamthitta. He did his MSc in Mathematics from Ravi Shankar University

Raipur Raipur ( ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Raipur is also the administrative headquarters of Raipur district and Raipur division, and the largest city of the state. It was a part of Madhya Pradesh before the state of Ch ...

state of Chhattisgarh (then

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...

) and was the first rank holder. He completed his Post Graduation with Gold medal. He later came back to

and joined as lecturer in Mathematics in various colleges of NSS Management in

. He worked in NSS College,

Pandalam Pandalam is a municipal town in Pathanamthitta district Kerala, India. Pandalam is considered a holy town due to its connection with Lord Ayyappa and Sabarimala. Rightly recognised to be the ''educational and cultural capital of Central Trava ...

for most of the time, till his retirement as Head of Department in 2002. He has served as the vice chairman of The Kerala Folklore Academy from 1997 to 2001.

As Padayani exponent and writer

Vasudevan Pillai has contributed greatly to the field of Kerala folklore. He has written books on

and other traditional art forms. : 1. Padayaniyile pala kolangal 2. Padayani 3. Padayaniyude jeevathalam 4. Padayani : Janakeya anushtaana nadakam ( Mahatma Gandhi University textbook) 5. Padayani : Oru ithihasa nadakam 6. Padayani : The traditional epi theater (English, but not a translation) 7. Vamsheeya sangeetha shastram 8. Ethino musicology (English, but not a translation) 9. Apasaraka bimbangalude aasura gethiroopangal (study on Kadammanitta poetry) 10. Kadinjoo pottan (drama based on Kadammanitta poetry)

Awards

He is the recipient of State Awards for his literary and cultural contributions. : 1. Kerala sangeetha naadaka Academy Award in 1995 2. Kerala sahithya Academy Award in 1996 3. Kerala youth welfare board award in 1997 4. P. K Kalan puraskaram sponsored by Kerala folklore academy and kerala cultural department. The cash award of Rs 1 Lakh along with his contributions were used to form a trust to award every year Rs10000 to a veteran ashan(Guru/Master) of padayani.

His Guru

The guru to Kadammanitta Vasudevan Pillai is Kadammanitta Raman Nair കടമ്മനിട്ട രാമൻ നായർ ആശാൻ the father of famous poet

Kadammanitta Ramakrishnan 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 province of Pathanamthitta district, Kerala. His childhood experiences, ...

Other contributions

His bond with villages can be seen clearly in his works. His association with the great poet of

led to many valuable literary contributions. The youth of

, under the leadership of Vasudevan Pillai, had formed ''Kadammanitta Gothra Kala Kalari'' through which this art form has been taught to many and is being passed over to generations.

Personal life

He currently lives in Kadammanitta. He is married to D. Omana Kumari and is father of three - Kadammanitta Manu (Mrudangam Artist), Kadammanitta Anu (Singer) and Lakshmi (Violin Artist). His company with

had led to the rise of many literary contributions.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pillai, Kadammanitta Writers from Kerala People from Pandalam Living people Scientists from Kerala 20th-century Indian mathematicians Malayalam-language writers Year of birth missing (living people)