Mannikoth Ramunni Nair (1903–1943), better known by his pseudonym, Sanjayan, was a
Malayalam
Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 2 ...
writer, journalist and one of the pioneers of
satirical writing in
Malayalam literature
Malayalam, the lingua franca of the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puduchery, is one of the six Classical languages of India. Malayalam literature comprises those literary texts written in Malayalam, a S ...
. Along with
E. V. Krishna Pillai
E. V. Krishna Pillai (14 September 1894 – 30 March 1938) was an Indian writer of Malayalam literature and member of Sree Moolam Popular Assembly of Travancore. He was known to be a multi-talented personality and excelled as an advocate, Member ...
, another of the notable Malayalam satirists, Sanjayan is known to have developed the genre of light essays in the language. Besides satires, he also wrote literary criticisms and translated
Othello into Malayalam language.
Biography
![Malabar christian College 1932](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Malabar_christian_College_1932.jpg)
Sanjayan was born on June 13, 1903 in
Thalassery
Thalassery (), formerly Tellicherry, is a municipality, Commercial City on the Malabar Coast in Kannur district, in the state of Kerala, India, bordered by the List of districts of India, districts of Mahé, India, Mahé (Pondicherry), Kozhikode ...
, a town in
Kannur District of the south Indian state of
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 ...
to Madavil Kunjiraman Vaidyar and Manikkoth Paru Amma.
His father died when the boy was eight years old and he was brought up by his mother. He did his schooling at Brennan Branch School, the present day Government Brennen Higher Secondary School, after which he studied at
Government Brennen College, Thalassery
Brennen College is an educational institution in Kerala, affiliated to the Kannur University. It is located in Dharmadam, Thalassery of Kerala state, India. The college evolved from a school established by the English philanthropist Edward Br ...
,
Victoria College, Palakkad
The Government Victoria College in Palakkad, is the oldest institution of higher learning in the Malabar region of Kerala. It holds a rich educational heritage in the history of malabar region. It is affiliated to the Calicut University and ...
and
Madras Christian College from where he earned an
honours degree in English language and literature.
By this time, he had already mastered
Sanskrit language
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the lat ...
and had acquired a working knowledge of
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
and
French language
French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the Latin spoken in Gaul, and more specifically in Nor ...
s. Though he started his career as a clerk in government service soon after his graduation, he resigned the job after a short while to move to teaching by joining
Malabar Christian College
The Malabar Christian College (MCC), established in 1909, is one of the oldest institutions located in Kozhikode, Kerala, India.
History
It was established by Protestant Christian missionaries from Basel, Switzerland with the aim to impart educ ...
as a member of faculty.
During this period, he had a change of mind and started studying for law, passing the FL examination. However, he could not continue his studies due to personal issues but resumed the studies in 1932, studying for
Bachelor of Law
Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...
, which was also abandoned due to ill health; he contracted
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...
. While undergoing treatment and during his convalescence, he studied
Vedanta
''Vedanta'' (; sa, वेदान्त, ), also ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six (''āstika'') schools of Hindu philosophy. Literally meaning "end of the Vedas", Vedanta reflects ideas that emerged from, or were aligned with, t ...
and
Hindu astrology
Jyotisha or Jyotishya (from Sanskrit ', from ' “light, heavenly body" and ''ish'' - from Isvara or God) is the traditional Hindu system of astrology, also known as Hindu astrology, Indian astrology and more recently Vedic astrology. It is one ...
. After recovering from the disease, he moved his residence to
Kozhikode
Kozhikode (), also known in English as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. It has a corporation limit population of 609,224 and a metropolitan population of more than 2 million, making it the second la ...
in 1935 to take up the editorship of
Kerala Pathrika, a newspaper founded by
Chengalathu Kunhirama Menon but in 1938, joined
Malabar Christian College
The Malabar Christian College (MCC), established in 1909, is one of the oldest institutions located in Kozhikode, Kerala, India.
History
It was established by Protestant Christian missionaries from Basel, Switzerland with the aim to impart educ ...
again as a faculty where he worked until 1942.
Sanjayan married Karthyayani Amma, his cousin, in 1927 and had a son from the marriage which was short-lived as his wife died in 1930.
He also lost his only son in 1939. He died on September 13, 1943, at the age of 40, at his Thalassery residence.
Legacy
Sanjayan's contribution to the
Malayalam literature
Malayalam, the lingua franca of the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puduchery, is one of the six Classical languages of India. Malayalam literature comprises those literary texts written in Malayalam, a S ...
were mainly satirical essays criticizing the contemporary social state.
Along with
E. V. Krishna Pillai
E. V. Krishna Pillai (14 September 1894 – 30 March 1938) was an Indian writer of Malayalam literature and member of Sree Moolam Popular Assembly of Travancore. He was known to be a multi-talented personality and excelled as an advocate, Member ...
, he is considered as the pioneer of humorous and light essays in Malayalam literature.
Somarajan Padinjarittam, who translated Sanjayan's writings into English under the title, ''Selected Works - Sanjayan'', compared him to writers such as
P. G. Wodehouse
Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, ( ; 15 October 188114 February 1975) was an English author and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Jeeve ...
,
Stephen Leacock
Stephen P. H. Butler Leacock (30 December 1869 – 28 March 1944) was a Canadian teacher, political scientist, writer, and humorist. Between the years 1915 and 1925, he was the best-known English-speaking humorist in the world. He is known ...
,
James Thurber
James Grover Thurber (December 8, 1894 – November 2, 1961) was an American cartoonist, writer, humorist, journalist and playwright. He was best known for his cartoons and short stories, published mainly in ''The New Yorker'' and collected in ...
, and
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...
.
It is reported that, even when criticising the socio-political issues, he did not resort to personal slagging. His oeuvre is composed of satirical verses such as in ''Hasyanjali'', literary criticisms compiled as ''Sahitya Nikasham'' and ''Aaru Niroopanangal'' and books such as ''Vyamayanam'' and ''Adhyopaharam''.
he also translated
Othello of
William 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 ...
into Malayalam.
Sanjayan's career as a journalist started with his assignment as the editor of
Kerala Pathrika in 1935 which lasted for only a year until he founded ''Sanjayan'', an
eponymous
An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''.
Usage of the word
The term ''epon ...
humour journal, in 1936.
Later, he was the editor-in-chief of ''Viswaroopam'', a satirical magazine where he made satirical remarks even on such names as
Vallathol Narayana Menon
Vallathol Narayana Menon (Malayalam: വള്ളത്തോൾ നാരായണ മേനോൻ) (16 October 1878 – 13 March 1958) was a Malayalam poet and one of the triumvirate of modern Malayalam poetry, along with Asan and Ulloor ...
.
He also wrote in
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 ...
and one of his satirical pieces on the atrocities of the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
earned the newspaper a temporary ban.
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Translations
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Translations into English
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References
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{{Authority control
Indian satirists
People from Thalassery
Malayalam-language writers
1903 births
1944 deaths
Malayalam-language journalists
Government Victoria College, Palakkad alumni
Journalists from Kerala
Malabar Christian College faculty
Madras Christian College alumni