Vishnunarayanan Namboothiri (2 June 1939 – 25 February 2021) was an Indian writer and scholar of
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 Sou ...
. Known primarily for his poems, Namboothiri also contributed to other genres such as essays, translations and children's literature. ''Swathanthrathe Kurichu Oru Geetham'', ''Bhoomigeethangal'', ''Indiayenna Vikaaram'' and ''Charulata'' count among his notable works. 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, c ...
honored him with the fourth highest civilian award of the
Padma Shri
Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...
in 2014 and the
Government of Kerala
Government of Kerala is the subnational government of the Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. The chief minister and their most senior ministers belong to the supreme decision ...
awarded him the
Ezhuthachan Puraskaram
The Ezhuthachan Puraskaram is the highest literary honour is given by the Kerala Sahitya Akademi, Government of Kerala. The award is named after Thunchaththu Ezhuthachan, the father of the Malayalam language and consists of a cash prize of 5,00,00 ...
, the highest literary award in Malayalam, the same year. He was also a recipient of
Vayalar Award
The Vayalar Award is given for the best literary work in Malayalam. The award was instituted in 1977 by the Vayalar Ramavarma Memorial Trust in memory of the poet and lyricist Vayalar Ramavarma (1928-1975). A sum of 25,000, a silver plate and ce ...
,
Vallathol Award
Vallathol Award is a literary award given by the Vallathol Sahithya Samithi for contribution to Malayalam literature. The award was instituted in 1991 in memory of Vallathol Narayana Menon
Vallathol Narayana Menon (Malayalam: വള്ളത ...
,
Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Overall Contributions
The Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Overall Contributions is an award given every year by the Kerala Sahitya Akademi (Kerala Literary Academy) to Malayalam writers for their overall contributions to Malayalam literature. It is one of the twelve ...
,
Asan Prize,
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 ...
and
Odakkuzhal Award
''Odakkuzhal'' is a 1975 Indian Malayalam-language film, directed by P. N. Menon and produced by M. P. Navakumar. The film stars Sheela, Jose Prakash, P. J. Antony and Alummoodan in the lead roles. The film has musical score by M. K. Arjunan ...
.
Biography
Vishnunarayanan Namboothiri was born on June 2, 1939 to Vishnu Namboothiri and Adhithi Antharjanam at Seeravally Illam in
Thiruvalla
Thiruvalla, alternately spelled Tiruvalla, is a town in Kerala and the Headquarters of the Taluk of the same name located in Pathanamthitta district in the State of Kerala, India. The town is spread over an area of . It lies on the banks of ...
, Kerala.
After traditional education of
Vedas
upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''.
The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...
,
Puranas
Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...
and
Sanskrit
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 late ...
from his grandfather, he did his school education at Prince Marthanda Varma High School, Peringara and subsequently, obtained his graduate degree from
St. Berchmans College
St. Berchmans College, Changanassery (Autonomous), also known as SB College, is one of the first Autonomous Colleges in Kerala. One of the most famous colleges in India, the college has a strength of 3000 students with 800 hostlers. Currently, ...
,
Changanacherry
Changanassery or Changanacherry is a municipal town in Kottayam district in the state of Kerala, India.
History
The first recorded history on the origin of Changanacherry is obtained from Sangam period literature. According to Sangam era d ...
and his master's degree from
St. Joseph's College, Devagiri, topping the examination.
He started his career as a teacher of Mathematics at his alma mater, Peringara School but moved to
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 faculty in English department. Later, he worked in various parts of the state such as
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 ...
,
Kollam
Kollam (), also known by its former name Quilon , is an ancient seaport and city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. The city i ...
,
Pattambi
Pattambi is a town taluk and municipality in the Palakkad district of the state of Kerala, India. It is also the administrative headquarters of the Pattambi Taluk. Pattambi is located along the banks of Bharathappuzha river. A Mini Civil Station ...
,
Ernakulam
Ernakulam () is the Central Business District of the city of Kochi in Kerala, India and has lent its name to the Ernakulam district. Many major establishments, including the Kerala High Court, the office of the Kochi Municipal Corporation a ...
,
Tripunithura
Thrippunithura or Tripunithura (), is a prominent historical and residential region in the City of Kochi in Kerala, India. Located about 7 km (4 mi) from the city centre, Tripunithura was the capital of the erstwhile Kingdom of Cochin ...
,
Chittur
Chittur-Thathamangalam is a town and municipality in Palakkad district of Kerala State, India. It is the headquarters of Chittur taluk, south-east of Palakkad, on the banks of the Kannadipuzha, a major headstream of the Bharathapuzha, the sec ...
,
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 districts of Mahé (Pondicherry), Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kasaragod and Kodagu (Karna ...
(
Government Brennen College
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 ...
)
and the ''State Institute of Languages'',
before superannuating from service as the head of the department of English at the
University College Thiruvananthapuram
University College, Thiruvananthapuram (UCT) is a constituent college of the University of Kerala, based primarily in Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of the Indian state of Kerala.
The college was awarded 23rd rank by National Institutional Ran ...
. Later, he also worked as the high priest at
Sreevallabha Temple, his ancestral temple.
Vishnunarayanan Namboothiri was married to Savithri Antharjanam
and the couple had two daughters, Adhithi and Aparna.
Death
He died on February 25, 2021 aged 81, at his home in Thycaud near
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 ...
due to age-related illnesses.
He was cremated with full state honours at Santhikavadam Crematorium near his home.
Temple controversy
During his tenure as the high priest of
Sreevallabha Temple, an official of the temple raised an issue in 1997 regarding his travel to London for presenting a paper on
Vedas
upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''.
The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...
, which the official claimed that crossing the seas was an unacceptable practice for a priest.
He was asked to abstain from performing his duties as the priest. However, the controversy subsided after public resistance and Namboothiri resumed his priestly duties.
Awards
Vishnunarayanan Namboothiri, whose poems are known to be a blend of tradition with modernity,
received the
Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Poetry
The Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Poetry is an award given every year by the Kerala Sahitya Akademi (Kerala Literary Academy) to Malayalam writers for writing poetry of literary merit. It is one of the twelve categories of the Kerala Sahitya A ...
in 1979 for his poetry anthology, ''Bhumigeethangal''.
Fifteen years later,
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 ...
selected his anthology, ''Ujjayiniyile Rappakalukal'' for the 1994
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 ...
.
In between, he received the
Odakkuzhal Award
''Odakkuzhal'' is a 1975 Indian Malayalam-language film, directed by P. N. Menon and produced by M. P. Navakumar. The film stars Sheela, Jose Prakash, P. J. Antony and Alummoodan in the lead roles. The film has musical score by M. K. Arjunan ...
for his work, ''Mukhamevide?''.
He received the
Asan Smaraka Kavitha Puraskaram
Asan Memorial Poetry Prize or Asan Smaraka Kavitha Puraskaram is a literary award instituted in 1985 by Madras-based Asan Memorial Association in memory of Malayalam poet Kumaran Asan. It is given annually to honour outstanding poets in Malay ...
in 1996,
and
Kerala Sahitya Akademi
The Kerala Sahitya Akademi or Academy for Malayalam literature is an autonomous body established to promote the Malayalam language and Malayalam literature, literature. It is situated in City of Thrissur, Kerala in India.
History
The academy ...
honored him again in 2004 with their
Award for Overall Contributions.
He received the Mathrubhumi Literary Award in 2009
and the year 2010 brought him two awards, *
Vayalar Award
The Vayalar Award is given for the best literary work in Malayalam. The award was instituted in 1977 by the Vayalar Ramavarma Memorial Trust in memory of the poet and lyricist Vayalar Ramavarma (1928-1975). A sum of 25,000, a silver plate and ce ...
for ''Chaarulata''
and the
Vallathol Award
Vallathol Award is a literary award given by the Vallathol Sahithya Samithi for contribution to Malayalam literature. The award was instituted in 1991 in memory of Vallathol Narayana Menon
Vallathol Narayana Menon (Malayalam: വള്ളത ...
. The Government of India honored him in 2014 with
Padma Shri
Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...
, the fourth highest civilian award in India,
and the same year, The Government of Kerala awarded him their highest literary award of the
Ezhuthachan Puraskaram
The Ezhuthachan Puraskaram is the highest literary honour is given by the Kerala Sahitya Akademi, Government of Kerala. The award is named after Thunchaththu Ezhuthachan, the father of the Malayalam language and consists of a cash prize of 5,00,00 ...
. The other awards received by him include Changampuzha Award,
Ulloor Award, Pandalam Keralavarma Poetry Award,
Deviprasadam Trust Award
This is a list of literary awards given for Malayalam–language.
----
Jnanapeetam Award (Jnanpith)
Jnanpith Award, India's most prestigious literary honour, was won by the following Malayalam authors.
Other major awards and their winners a ...
(2005),
["Awards, Trusts and Scholarships: 2: Deviprasaadam Trust"](_blank)
Namboothiri.com. Retrieved 3 January 2023. Ettumanoor Somadasan Sahitya Puraskaram
and C. V. Kunhiraman Literary Prize.
Bibliography
Poetry
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Essays
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Travelogues
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Translations
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*''Rithu Samhaaram''
*''Gandhi''
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*''Kuttikalude Shakespeare''
See also
*
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 Sou ...
Further reading
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References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Namboothiri, Vishnunarayanan
Malayalam-language writers
Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Malayalam
Recipients of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award
University College Thiruvananthapuram faculty
1939 births
2021 deaths
Malayalam poets
Writers from Kerala
Recipients of the Padma Shri in literature & education
People from Thiruvalla
Indian male essayists
20th-century Indian translators
20th-century Indian poets
20th-century Indian essayists
Indian male poets
20th-century Indian male writers