''Ummachu'' (''Beloved'') is 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 was des ...

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

written by

Uroob Parutholli Chalappurathu Kuttikrishnan, popularly known by his pen name Uroob ( ml, ഉറൂബ്; 1915 – 1979) was an Indian writer of Malayalam literature. Along with Basheer, Thakazhi, Kesavadev, and Pottekkatt, Uroob was counted am ...

in 1954. ''Ummachu'' along with ''

Sundarikalum Sundaranmarum ''Sundarikalum Sundaranmarum'' (''The Beautiful and the Handsome'') is a 1958 Malayalam novel written by Uroob (P. C. Kuttikrishnan). ''Sundarikalum Sundaranmarum'' along with ''Ummachu'' are considered the best works by Uroob and are ranked amon ...

'' are considered the best works by Uroob and are ranked among the finest novels in Malayalam. In ''Ummachu'', Uroob explores the ramifications of human relationships in a village.

Theme

''Ummachu'' is a

saga is a series of science fantasy role-playing video games by Square Enix. The series originated on the Game Boy in 1989 as the creation of Akitoshi Kawazu at Square (video game company), Square. It has since continued across multiple platforms, ...

of love and longing, loss and suffering. It narrates the ups and downs in the eventful life of a handful of characters.

Plot summary

Ummachu is in love with Mayan, her childhood friend. But much to her dislike, she is married to a rich, but timid Beeran making her marriage unhappy. Mayan manhandles the old man, the ‘village historian,’ who is supposed to have been instrumental in conducting Ummachu’s marriage with Beeran. The old man becomes unconscious and Mayan leaves the village believing that he is dead. Mayan goes to Wayanad and becomes a rich spice merchant. He returns to the village when he learns that the old man was not dead, but had later died of illness. Ummachu lived an unhappy life with her husband and son. Mayan murders Beeran and the police arrest an innocent man for the crime. Mayan marries Ummachu. Years roll by. Abdu, Ummachu’s son is in love with their Manager’s daughter Chinnammu, a Hindu. Abdu learns that his stepfather Mayan is the murderer of his father and dislikes Ummachu because she was aware of his father's murder by Mayan. Mayan commits suicide. Ummachu divides her property between Abdu and her two sons by Mayan. In the elections, Abdu contests as the Congress candidate against Hydros, the younger son of Ummachu by Mayan, a candidate of the ‘League’ and Hydros wins. Ignoring the strong protests from the communities, Abdu marries Chinnammu.

Film adaptation

In 1971, a film adaptation of the novel was released, starring

Sheela Sheela Ravichandran (Born 22 March 1945) is an Indian actress and director who appears predominantly in Malayalam cinema. Paired with Prem Nazir, they hold the Guinness World Record for acting in the largest number of films (130) together as h ...

as Ummachu,

Madhu Madhu (Sanskrit: ) is a word used in several Indo-Aryan languages meaning ''honey'' or ''sweet''. It is ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European ''*médʰu'', whence English '' mead''. Metaphorical use ''Madhu'' has been used for millennia si ...

as Mayan,

Nellikode Bhaskaran Nellikode Bhaskaran (21 April 1924 – 11 August 1988) was an Indian actor in Malayalam movies. His real name was Bhaskara Menon. He mostly played character roles and supporting roles. Awards Kerala State Film Awards: * Second Best Actor ...

as Beeran, and directed by

P. Bhaskaran Pulloottupadathu Bhaskaran alias as P. Bhaskaran (21 April 1924 – 25 February 2007), was a Malayalam poet, lyricist of Malayalam film songs, and filmmaker. He penned more than 3000 songs for about 250 films. He also directed 44 Malayalam fea ...

himself scripted the film. Its music is scored by Raghunath with lyrics by P. Bhaskaran.

References

External links

* {{Malayalam Literature , state=collapsed 1954 novels Indian novels adapted into films Malayalam novels Novels set in Kerala Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award-winning works Novels by Uroob DC Books books 1954 Indian novels