M. V. Venkatram (18 May 1920 – 14 January 2000), was a

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

, writer and translator from

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

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 ...

Biography

Venkatram was born in

Kumbakonam Kumbakonam (formerly spelt as Coombaconum or Combaconum) or Kudanthai is a city municipal corporation in the Thanjavur district in the States of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located from Thanjavur and from Chennai and is the headq ...

in a

Saurashtra Brahmin The Saurashtra people, or Saurashtrians, are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic Hindu Brahmin community of South India who speak the Saurashtra language, an Indo-Aryan language, and predominantly reside in the Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala ...

family. He obtained a

B.A Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in

Economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

and was involved in silk

Zari ''Zari'' (or ''jari'') is an even thread traditionally made of fine gold or silver used in traditional Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani garments, especially as brocade in saris etc. This thread is woven into fabrics, primarily silk, to make in ...

business. He first started publishing in the literary magazine Manikodi in the 1930s, while he was still a college student. He was influenced by Ku. Pa. Rajagopalan and was part of a literary circle that included Karichan Kunju (R. Narayanaswami), Thi. Janakiraman, Thiruloka Seetaram, Dhenuka, Thanjai Prakash, Na.Vichuvanathan, C.M.Muthu and Podhikaiverkpan. His works have been published in magazines like ''Kaalamohini'', ''Grama Ooozhiyan'' and ''Sivaji''. He also ran a literary magazine named ''Thenee'' briefly. He has written over two hundred short stories and novels. ''Nithyakanni'' ''Kathukal'' and ''Velivithee'' are his most noted works. He also wrote more than 60 short biographies for Palaniappa Brothers and translated over 10 books for the National Book Trust of India. In 1993, he was awarded the

Sahitya Akademi Award The Sahitya Akademi Award is a literary honour in India, which the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, annually confers on writers of the most outstanding books of literary merit published in any of the 22 languages of the ...

for

for novel ''Kathukal'' (lit. Ears).Tamil Sahitya Akademi Awards 1955-2007

Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of, the Indian government. Its of ...

Official website.

Partial bibliography

Novels

*''Nithyakanni''(1955) *''Uyirin yathirai'' (1957) *''Iruttu'' (1957) *''Arumbu'' (1965) *''Velvithee'' (1963) *''Oru pen poradukiral'' (1975) * ''Kathukal'' (1992)

Short story collections

*''Mallikai vasam'' (1964) *''Sukam enge'' (1966) *''Kuyili'' (1964) *''Varavum selavum'' (1964) * ''Vyasar padaitha penmanikal'' (1966) * ''Mohini'' (1964)

Translations

Rajani Palme Dutt Rajani may refer to: *Rajani (name), people named Rajani *Rajani (actress) (born 1965), Indian film actress * ''Rajani'' (TV series), a 1980s Indian TV series * ''Rajani'' (film), a 2009 Indian Kannada romantic comedy * ''Rajani'', an 1877 novel b ...

's ''India Today''

Centenary

In connection with his centenary (18 May 2020) among others, the following articles appeared, by way of tribute to him. * The centenary celebrations of M.V.Venkatram * M.V.Venkatram in his centenary * The continuous rain known as M.V.V. * On the novel ''Kathukal'' of M.V.V. * Special commemoration volume by Adavi on M.V.Venkaram அடவி, எம்.வி.வெங்கட்ராம் சிறப்பிதழ், 19 மே 2020
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Venkatram, M. V. 1920 births 20th-century Indian essayists Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Tamil Tamil writers 2000 deaths Writers from Tamil Nadu Indian Tamil people People from Thanjavur district