Anand (writer) explained

P. Sachidanandan
Pseudonym:Anand
Birth Name:P. Sachidanandan
Birth Date:1936
Birth Place:Irinjalakkuda, Kerala, India
Occupation:Writer, author
Notableworks:Aalkkoottam (1970)
Marubhoomikal Undakunnathu (1989)
Jaivamanushyan (1991)
Govardhande Yathrakal (1995)

P. Sachidanandan (born 1936), who uses the pseudonym Anand, is an Indian writer, writing primarily in Malayalam. He is one of the known living intellectuals in India. His works are noted for their philosophical flavor, historical context and their humanism. He is a recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Award and three Kerala Sahitya Akademi Awards (story, novel, and scholarly literature). He is also a recipient of Ezhuthachan Puraskaram, Vayalar Award, Odakkuzhal Award, Muttathu Varkey Award, Vallathol Award and Yashpal Award. He did not accept the Yashpal Award and the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Novel.

Life

Sachidanandan was born in 1936 to a primary school teacher at Irinjalakuda in the Thrissur district (Trichur) of Kerala.[1] He graduated in Civil Engineering from College of Engineering, Trivandrum in 1958. He retired as Planning Director of the Central Water Commission after a career which included extended stints working in Gujarat, Mumbai and Bengal. He also worked in the military (North-East Frontier Agency) for four years during 1960–64 in the Short Service Commission.[2]

Anand resides in Delhi.[3]

Writing

It was the famous critic M. Govindan who helped Anand publish his maiden novel Alkkoottam.[4] At age 34, it was his first ever published work. It was a new experience for the Malayalee readers and the book received rave reviews and pungent criticisms alike. He followed Alkkoottam (Crowd) with three more equally abstract novels: Maranacertificate (Death Certificate), Abhayarthikal (Refugees) and Utharayanam. These books made Anand a writer with considerable standing in Malayalam. But it was in the late eighties and early nineties that Anand came up with two more novels, Marubhoomikal Undakunnathu and Govardhanante Yaathrakal, which made him an icon in Malayalam literature.

Contemporary Malayalam writer M. Mukundan made the following comment about Anand's style.

Anand's is the most articulate voice in Kerala today, which questions the moral premises of politics and most importantly, resists Hindu fundamentalism. His essays and novels unmistakably establish a metaphor of resistance. The prose in Anand's novels is taut - no moon will ever rise in it, nor flowers blossom or river breezes waft through. His language, stripped to the bone, sometimes challenges the reader to go through it.

Anand has also written many short stories and articles, most of which deal with plight of the ordinary people who are exploited by the people in power. His characters are not necessarily a Malayali, and often weaves in historical elements into his stories. More often they are also located outside Kerala. He is also a prolific essayist. He occasionally writes poems also.

Awards

Criticisms

The 'abstractness' of Anand's writing has been a cause for criticism, from people alleging he does not actually name concrete people and organizations, instead relying on a historical and abstract narrative, even in his political essays. Balachandran Chullikkadu, a well-known poet in Malayalam, once said that Anand is the messiah of NGOs.

Books by Anand

Novels and novellas

Short story collection

Dramas

Other books

Poems

Translations in English

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Anand (P.Sachidanandan) -- Malayalam Writer . 2019-01-25 . www.loc.gov . The South Asian Literary Recordings Project (Library of Congress New Delhi Office) . 2019-01-25.
  2. Web site: Anand - Sahapedia interview . 2019-02-28 . www.sahapedia.org . 2019-02-28.
  3. Web site: Anand: Doyen of Malayalam Literature . 2016-06-29 . Sahapedia . en . 2019-01-25.
  4. Web site: Anand - Chintha profile . 2019-01-25 . www.chintha.com . 2019-01-25 . 25 January 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190125183235/http://www.chintha.com/node/420 . dead .
  5. Web site: Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Story . 2019-01-25 . Kerala Sahitya Akademi . 2019-01-25 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170705154727/http://www.keralasahityaakademi.org/sp/Writers/ksa/Awards/Stories.htm . 5 July 2017 . dead .
  6. Web site: Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Novel . 2019-01-25 . Kerala Sahitya Akademi . 2019-01-25 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131109145935/http://www.keralasahityaakademi.org/sp/Writers/ksa/Awards/novel.htm . 9 November 2013 . dead .
  7. Web site: Winners of Vayalar Award . 2019-01-25 . www.keralaculture.org . en . 2019-01-25.
  8. Web site: Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award Miscellaneous . 2019-01-25 . Kerala Sahitya Akademi . 2019-01-25 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170705044712/http://www.keralasahityaakademi.org/sp/Writers/ksa/Awards/others_contd.htm#Vivarthanam . 5 July 2017 . dead .
  9. Web site: Winners of Odakkuzhal Award . 2019-01-25 . www.keralaculture.org . en . 2019-01-25.
  10. News: Vallathol Award for Anand. The Hindu. 12 September 2015.
  11. News: Writer Anand selected for Ezhuthachan Puraskaram . 2019-11-01 . The Hindu . 2019-11-02 . en-IN . 0971-751X.
  12. Web site: April 2, 2007. Anand's book Govardhan's Travels talks about life experiences. 2021-10-05. India Today. en.
  13. Book: Anand . Raṇṭu nāṭakaṅṅaḷ . 1998 . Prabhat Book House . 41143454.

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