Author Award: Sahitya Akademi Award

Ramachandra Guha is an eminent historian and biographer whose research interests span across varied fields. An authoritative voice on the history of modern India, he is a widely acclaimed author. His landmark history of the Republic, India after Gandhi, was chosen as a book of the year by several notable publications, including The Economist and The Washington Post. He has penned a two-volume biography of Mahatma Gandhi, with the first volume titled Gandhi Before India and the second titled Gandhi: The Years That Changed the World.

He is also the author of an award-winning social history of cricket, A Corner of a Foreign Field which The Guardian chose as one of the ten best books ever on cricket. He has written extensively on environmentalism, combining a history of dissent from peasants and ecological history. His book The Unquiet Woods opened up a new field of study- the environmental history of South Asia. Environmentalism: A Global History, Speaking with Nature: The Origins of Indian Environmentalism are some of his books on environmentalism. Ramachandra Guha is the recipient of several prestigious accolades, including the Howard Milman Award of the British Society for Sports History, the Ramnath Goenka Prize for Excellence in Journalism, the Sahitya Akademi Award, and the Fukuoka Prize for Contributions to Asian Studies.

U. A. Khadar (1935–2020) was born in the village of Billin in Rangoon in 1935 to a Burmese mother, Mamaidi, and a Malayali father, Moitheenkutty Haji. He worked at All India Radio in Kozhikode, the Institute of Maternal and Child Health at the Medical College, and the Government General Hospital before retiring from government service in 1990. A prolific writer, he authored numerous novels, short story collections, and essays. His major works include Thrikkottur Peruma, which won the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for short stories in 1984, Aghorashivam, which earned the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for a novel in 2001, Kathapole Jeevitham, recipient of the S. K. Pottekkatt Award in 1993, and Oru Pidi Vattu, which won the Abu Dhabi Sakthi Award. His Thrikkottur Novellas won the Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award in 2009. He was also honored with the Kerala Sahitya Parishad Award in 2016 and the Mathrubhumi Literary Award in 2019. He passed away on December 12, 2020.

Kunhunni Mash (1927–2006) was born on May 10, 1927. His father was Neelakandan Moosath of the Njayappilly family, and his mother was Narayaniamma of the Athiyara family. He began his professional career as a teacher at Chelari High School. In 1953, he joined the Sree Ramakrishna Mission High School in Kozhikode as a teacher and retired in 1982. His major works include Rashtreeyam, Kuttippencil, Oonutottu Urakkam Vare, Cheriya Kuttikkavithakal, Valiya Kuttikkavithakal, and Kunhunnimashum Kuttiyolum. He received numerous accolades, including the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award and the State Children’s Literature Award. He passed away on March 26, 2006.

P. Kunhiraman Nair (1906–1978) was born on October 26, 1906 (Thulam 9, 1082 in the Malayalam calendar) in Adiyodi House, Ajanur village, in the Kasaragod district. He received his early education at Vellikoth Primary School and later studied under Punnasseri Nambi at the Pattambi Sanskrit College and at the Sanskrit school in Thanjavur. He worked in various institutions as a teacher and journalist. In 1948, he was honored with the title Bhaktakavi by the King of Neeleswaram. His famous work Kaliyachan earned him the Madras Government Award in 1955 and the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award in 1959. His work Thamarathoni also received the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1967. Over his career, he published more than sixty works, including poetry, plays, biographies, essays, autobiographies, and children’s literature. He passed away on May 27, 1978.

P. Narendranath (1934–1991) was born in Nellaya, near Pattambi. He held degrees in economics and banking, and retired as a Regional Manager of Canara Bank. A prolific writer, he authored over thirty books spanning novels, plays, and children’s literature, with notable works including Vikritiraman and Andhagayan. His contributions earned him the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award and an award from the Central Ministry of Education. Some of his works have also been translated into Tamil and Hindi. He passed away in 1991.

V. K. N. (Vadakke Koottala Narayanankutty Nair) was born on April 6, 1932, in Thiruvilwamala, Thrissur district. He worked as a journalist in Delhi from 1959 to 1969. Renowned for his sharp wit and satirical style, V. K. N. made significant contributions to Malayalam literature through his short stories and novels. His notable recognitions include the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Aarohanam (1970), the Sahitya Akademi Award for Payyan Kathakal (1982), and the Muttathu Varkey Award for Pithamahan (1997). He also served as the Vice President of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi and as Chairman of the Kunchan Nambiar Memorial. V. K. N. passed away on January 25, 2004.

Vayalar Rama Varma was born on March 25, 1928, to Vellarappally Kerala Varma and Vayalar Raghavaparamil Ambalika Thampuratti. From a young age, he was trained in Sanskrit through the traditional gurukula system. Closely associated with the Communist movement, Vayalar was a prominent figure in Kerala’s social and cultural spheres. He received the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award in 1961 for his poetry collection Sargageetham. A celebrated lyricist, he won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Lyricist three times and was honored with the President’s Gold Medal in 1974 as the best film lyricist in India. He passed away on October 27, 1975. His wife was Bharathithampuratti of the Chengannur Puthen Kovilakam, and they had four children: Sharachandran, Indulekha, Yamuna, and Sindhu. In his memory, the Vayalar Rama Varma Literary Award, one of Kerala’s most prestigious literary honors, has been awarded annually on October 27 since 1977.