OBITUARY TO KAMALA SURAYYA

NSUI JNU PAYS ITS HOMAGE TO KAMALA SURAYYA. KAMALA DAS, BORN ON MARCH 31, 1934, WAS ONE OF THE LEADING BI-LINGUAL WRITERS WHO WROTE BOTH IN ENGLISH AND HER MOTHER TONGUE MALAYALAM IN HER SOBRIQUET ''MADHAVIKUTTY.'' BORN TO V M NAIR AND RENOWNED MALAYALAM POETESS NALAPPATT BALAMANI AMMA, KAMALA HAD SPENT HER CHILDHOOD IN CALCUTTA WHERE HER FATHER WAS EMPLOYED, AND NALAPPAT, HER ANCESTRAL HOME AT PONNAYURKULAM IN KERALA. IN 1976 AT THE AGE OF 42, KAMALA WROTE HER AUTOBIOGRAPHY MY DAYS, WHICH WAS ICONOCLASTIC TO SAY THE LEAST. THE BOOK DETAILED HER MUSINGS OF THE HEART AND HAD CREATED LOT OF CONTROVERSY IN THE LITERARY WORLD. THE BOOK WAS A GREAT SUCCESS AND WAS READ WIDELY AND TRANSLATED TO MORE THAN 15 LANGUAGES. IN MALAYALAM, KAMALA WROTE SHORT STORY COLLECTIONS IN PAKSHIYUDE MANAM IN 1964 AND NARICHEERUKAL PARAKKUMBOL' IN 1966. BOTH THE COLLECTIONS WERE WELL ACCEPTED BY READERS IN KERALA. IN 1968, KAMALA GOT THE SAHITYA AKADEMI AWARD FOR HER SHORT STORY THANUPPU AND THAT MADE THE CRITICS SIT UP AND TAKE NOTICE OF THE WRITER.

KAMALA GOT THE VAYALAR AWARD FOR HER NOVEL NEERMATHALAM POOTHA KALAM IN 1994. BESIDES THE HIGHLY ACCLAIMED BOOKS, THE OTHER PROMINENT WORKS OF KAMALA IN MALAYALAM INCLUDE 'BALYAKALA SMARANAKAL' (1987), 'VARSHAGALKKU MUMBU' (1989), 'PALAYAN (1990), NEYPAYASAM (1991), DAYARIKKURIPPUKAL (1992), CHEKKERUNNA PAKSHIKAL (1996), AND NASHTAPETTA NEELAMBARI (1998). IN 1999, AT THE AGE OF 65, SHE EMBRACED ISLAM AND TOOK THE NAME OF KAMALA SURAYYA AND THAT TOO LIKE HER WORKS KICKED UP A LOT OF CONTROVERSIES IN KERALA. IN ENGLISH, HER WORKS INCLUDE ALPHABET OF LUST (1977), THE ANAMALAI POEMS, PADMAVATI,' 'THE HARLOT AND OTHER STORIES' (1992) AND ONLY THE SOUL KNOW HOW TO SING' (1996). IN HER ILLUSTRIOUS WRITING career, KAMALA HAD GOT NUMEROUS AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS WHICH INCLUDE ASAN WORLD PRIZE, EZHUTHACHAN AWARD AND KERALA SAHITYA AKADEMI AWARD. SHE ALSO DABBLED WITH POLITICS AND HAD LAUNCHED A PARTY BY THE NAME OF LOK SEVA PARTY WHICH WAS MEANT TO UNDERTAKE HUMANITARIAN WORK AND TO PROVIDE SUCCOUR TO ORPHANED MOTHERS. IN 1984, SHE CONTESTED AND LOST IN THE PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS. HER ELDEST SON M D NALAPPAT HAD MARRIED A PRINCESS FROM THE TRAVANCORE ROYAL FAMILY AND WAS THE FORMER RESIDENT EDITOR OF TIMES OF INDIA.

NSUI PRESIDENT SIMMY JOSEPH STATED THAT KAMALA SURAYYA STOOD FOR HUMANITY AND SHE WAS THE WRITER OF COMMON PEOPLE. HER DEMISE IS A TERRIBLE LOSS FOR THE COUNTRY'S LITERARY FIELD.