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 The term Indian classical drama refers to the tradition of dramatic literature and performance in ancient India. The roots of drama in the Indian subcontinent can be traced back to the Rigveda (1200-1500 BCE), which contains a number of hymns in ...

and

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

, notably

Kalidasa Kālidāsa (''fl.'' 4th–5th century CE) was a Classical Sanskrit author who is often considered ancient India's greatest poet and playwright. His plays and poetry are primarily based on the Vedas, the Rāmāyaṇa, the Mahābhārata and t ...

's ''Vikramorvasiyam'' (1981, 1996), ''Shakuntalam'' (1982), Bhasa's ''Madhyamavyayogam'' (1979), ''Karnabharam'' (1984, 2001), ''Uru Bhangam'' (1988), ''Swapnavasavadattam'', and ''Dootavakyam'' (1996). He was the founder director of theatre troupe, Sopanam, which led to the foundation of Bhashabharati: Centre for Performing Arts, Training and Research, in

Trivandrum Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its List of renamed Indian cities and states, former name Trivandrum (), is the Capital city, capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as ...

. He was awarded the

Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IPA: Saṅgīta Nāṭaka Akādamī Puraskāra), also known as the Akademi Puraskar, is an award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama. It is the highest Indian recogni ...

for Direction in 1983 by Sangeet Natak Akademi, and its highest award for lifetime achievement, the

Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship The Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, also known as Akademi Ratna Sadasyata, is an Indian honour for the performing arts presented by Sangeet Natak Academy. It is "the most prestigious and rare honour" conferred by the Academy and is "restricte ...

in 2002. In 2007, he was awarded the

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...

in the field of Arts, by the

Government of India The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

. He died in his residence on 26 June 2016, aged 88, a few days after returning from the hospital.

Early life and education

He was born in the village of

Kavalam Kavalam is a village in Kuttanadu, Kerala state, Alappuzha District. India. Location Kavalam is located on the borders of Alapuzha and Kottayam districts, on the banks of Vembanad Lake. Environment The Pampa river flows through the village ...

, into an ancient family from

Kuttanad Kuttanad ( ml, കുട്ടനാട്‌) is a region covering the Alappuzha, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta Districts, in the state of Kerala, India, well known for its vast paddy fields and geographical peculiarities. The region has the lo ...

Alappuzha Alappuzha or Alleppey () is the administrative headquarters of Alappuzha district in state of Kerala, India. The Backwaters of Alappuzha are one of the most popular tourist attractions in India which attracts millions of domestic and interna ...

, Kerala, India. His family name is Chalayil and he was a nephew of Sardar

Kavalam Madhava Panikkar Kavalam Madhava Panikkar (3 June 1895 – 10 December 1963), popularly known as Sardar K. M. Panikkar, was an Indian statesman and diplomat. He was also a professor, newspaper editor, historian and novelist. He was born in Travancore, then a ...

and a cousin of Dr.

K. Ayyappa Panicker 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 ...

, a

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry ( Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam wa ...

poet. He attended

CMS College The CMS College (CMS College Kottayam) is the first Western-style college in India. Overview The college now has 17 Undergraduate and 18 postgraduate departments. There are six research centres in the college. Research work leading to the degr ...

Kottayam Kottayam () is a municipal town in the Indian state of Kerala. Flanked by the Western Ghats on the east and the Vembanad Lake and paddy fields of Kuttanad on the west. It is the district headquarters of Kottayam district, located in south ...

, whose alumni included

K. P. S. Menon Kumara Padmanabha Sivasankara Menon Sr. (18 October 1898 – 22 November 1982), usually known as K. P. S. Menon, was a diplomat and diarist, a career member of the Indian Civil Service (British India), Indian Civil Service. He was appoint ...

and his uncle Sardar

K. M. Panikkar Kavalam Madhava Panikkar (3 June 1895 – 10 December 1963), popularly known as Sardar K. M. Panikkar, was an Indian statesman and diplomat. He was also a professor, newspaper editor, historian and novelist. He was born in Travancore, then a ...

. He obtained a degree in economics from

Sanatana Dharma College Sanatana Dharma College or S. D. College is an educational institution in Alappuzha, Kerala, India, affiliated with the University of Kerala. It is one of the oldest affiliated aided colleges under the University of Kerala. The college has been ...

(SD College),

and later a Bachelor of Law degree from Madras Law College.

Career

He started his career as a lawyer in 1955 and practised law for six years before devoting himself to art and literature. In 1961 he was nominated as Secretary of

Kerala Sangeetha Nadaka Academy, Thrissur Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Academy is located in Thrissur city, of Kerala, in India. It was established on 26 April 1958, inaugurated by then Indian Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. The academy started a cultural centre at the Bahrain Kerala ...

and shifted his base to

Thrissur Thrissur (), formerly Trichur, also known by its historical name Thrissivaperur, is a city and the headquarters of the Thrissur district in Kerala, India. It is the third largest urban agglomeration in Kerala after Kochi and Kozhikode, and t ...

, the cultural capital of Kerala. His work has always been rooted in both the classical and folk traditions of Kerala. Kavalam Narayana Panicker Image1

In 1974, Kavalam shifted his residence to the state capital

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 ...

. In this period his play ''Avanavan Kadamba'' was filmed by

G. Aravindan Govindan Aravindan (23 January 1935 – 15 March 1991) was an Indian film director, screenwriter, musician, cartoonist, and painter. He was one of the pioneers of parallel cinema in Malayalam. He was known for his unorthodox way of filmma ...

. He has worked in many countries, including the former

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. In

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

he worked with Greek artists on a production of the ''Ilyayana'', a fusion of the Indian

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...

and the Greek epic

Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Odysse ...

. He has directed two movies about the greatest

Kutiyattam Koodiyattam ( ml, കൂടിയാട്ടം; IAST: kūṭiyāṭṭaṁ; ) is a traditional performing art form in the state of Kerala, India. It is a combination of ancient Sanskrit theatre with elements of ''Koothu'', an ancient perfor ...

maestro legendary actor Guru

Mani Madhava Chakyar Guru Mani Madhava Chakyar (IAST: ''Māṇi Mādhava Cākyār'') (15 February 1899 – 14 January 1990) was a celebrated master performance artist and Sanskrit scholar from Kerala, India, considered to be the greatest Chakyar Koothu and Koodiy ...

: '' Mani Madhava Chakyar: The Master at Work'' (1994) and ''Parvati Viraham'' (1993) in Kuttiyattam form featuring Mani Madhava Chakyar as

Ravana Ravana (; , , ) is a rakshasa king of the island of Lanka, and the chief antagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana'' and its adaptations. In the ''Ramayana'', Ravana is described to be the eldest son of sage Vishrava and rakshasi Kaikesi. He a ...

. As a lyricist in

Malayalam cinema Malayalam cinema is an Indian film industry of Malayalam-language motion pictures. It is based in Kochi, Kerala, India. The films produced in Malayalam cinema are known for their cinematography and story-driven plots. In 1982, ''Elippathayam' ...

, he has written for films like ''Ulsavapittennu'', ''

Manjadikuru ''Manjadikuru'' ( en, Lucky Red Seeds) is a 2008 Malayalam film written and directed by Anjali Menon. A shorter video version of the film was premiered at the 2008 International Film Festival of Kerala, and won the FIPRESCI Award for best Mala ...

'' (2008), ''Vadakakkoru Hridayam'' (1978) and ''

Marmaram ''Marmmaram'' is a 1982 Indian Malayalam-language film, directed by Bharathan. The film stars Nedumudi Venu, Bharath Gopi, Jalaja and KPAC Lalitha . The film has musical score by M. S. Viswanathan. The film won the Kerala State Film Awards inc ...

'' (1982). He won

Kerala State Film Award The Kerala State Film Awards are the film awards for a motion picture made in Kerala. The awards started in 1969 by the Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala and since 1998 the awards have been bestowed by Kerala State Cha ...

for

Best Lyrics Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporatio ...

for the latter two films. In 1993 Erin B. Mee directed his play ''Ottayan'' in New York City. The Village Voice said: "the haunting pungency of a rich Asian folk-theatre tradition shines through every stylized gesture." Erin B. Mee devotes an entire chapter of her book ''Theatre of Roots'' to Panikkar's work. His work is also the subject of the volume ''K.N. Panikkar: The Theatre of Rasa'' edited by Udayan Vajpeyi. His play ''Aramba Chekkan'' is included in ''Drama Contemporary: India'', edited by Erin B. Mee and Erin B. Mee conducted an interview with him for PAJ magazine and his work is the subject of an interview by Erin B. Mee in Seagull Theatre Quarterly: 1995 "The Use of Folk Philosophy in Kavalam Narayana Panikkar's Poetic Theatre of Transformation." Seagull Theatre Quarterly 7:58-62. He has remained a consultant at Asianet Communications and vice-chairman for Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi.

Personal life

He was married and had two sons. He lived in

with his wife Saradamani and also had another house in his native village of Kavalam. He had two sons Kavalam Harikrishnan and Kavalam Sreekumar. Kavalam Harikrishnan served as BHASABHARATHI's Chief contact person before he died of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

in October 2009. His younger son

Kavalam Sreekumar Kavalam Sreekumar is a classical musician, Malayalam film singer and music composer from Kerala, India. His recitation of Ramayana is also famous. He has also rendered more than 60 famous Malayalam poems. He is the son of the noted Malayalam poet ...

, is a singer in Kerala. Sreekumar sang folk and light music numbers over three decades. He also sang for

Malayalam films Malayalam cinema is an Indian film industry of Malayalam-language motion pictures. It is based in Kochi, Kerala, India. The films produced in Malayalam cinema are known for their cinematography and story-driven plots. In 1982, ''Elippathayam' ...

over the years.

Awards and recognition

He was awarded

in 1983 and

in 2002 and the

civilian decoration in 2007. He has won

for

twice, in 1978 for ''Vadakakkoru Hridayam'' and in 1982 for ''

'', and the

Kalidas Samman The Kalidas Samman ( hi, कालिदास सम्मान) is an arts award presented annually by the Government of Madhya Pradesh in India. The award is named after Kālidāsa, a renowned Classical Sanskrit writer of ancient India. The ...

by the

Government of Madhya Pradesh Government of Madhya Pradesh also known as the State Government of Madhya Pradesh, or locally as the State Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and its 52 districts. It consists of an executive, ...

in (1994–1995). ;Other * 2013 – TTK Prestige-Vanitha Film Awards – Best Lyricist – ''

Amen Amen ( he, אָמֵן, ; grc, ἀμήν, ; syc, ܐܡܝܢ, ; ar, آمين, ) is an Abrahamic declaration of affirmation which is first found in the Hebrew Bible, and subsequently found in the New Testament. It is used in Jews, Jewish, Christia ...

'' Best Male Singer * 2013 –

Asiavision Awards Asiavision Awards have been held annually since 2006 to honor the artistes and technicians of Indian cinema and television & is organized under the leadership of renowned journalist Nissar Syed. More than 40,000 people across United Arab Emirates ...

– Best Lyricist

Works

* ''The Right to rule (Kōyma) ; and, The domain of the sun (Sūryasthāna)''. Seagull Books, 1989. . * ''Folklore of Kerala''. National Book Trust, India, 1991. * ''Karimkutty ; and, The lone tusker''. Seagull Books, 1991. .

References

Bibliography

* Mee, Erin B. 2008 ''Theatre of Roots: Redirecting the Modern Indian Stage''. Seagull Books. * Mee, Erin B. 1995. "Kavalam Narayana Panikkar: Meaning Into Action." PAJ #55. * Mee, Erin B. 1995 "The Use of Folk Philosophy in Kavalam Narayana Panikkar's Poetic Theatre of Transformation." Seagull Theatre Quarterly 7:58-62. * Panikkar, K. N. "Aramba Chekkan" In Mee, Erin B. ed. 2001. ''DramaContemporary:India''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press * *

External links

Hits of Kavalam Narayana Panikkar

– a detailed profile of Kavalam Narayana Paniker.
BhashaBharati, website

Kavalam Narayana Panicker at MSI
{{DEFAULTSORT:Panicker, Kavalam Narayana Narayana, Panicker Narayana, Panicker Indian male dramatists and playwrights Indian theatre directors People from Alappuzha district Narayana, Panicker Narayana, Panicker Narayana, Panicker Narayana, Panicker Kerala State Film Award winners Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in arts Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship Malayalam-language dramatists and playwrights Recipients of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award 20th-century Indian poets Dramatists and playwrights from Kerala 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights CMS College Kottayam alumni Poets from Kerala 20th-century Indian male writers