Malayattoor Ramakrishnan was a prominent Malayali

Malayali

Malayali is the term used to refer to the native speakers of Malayalam, originating from the Indian state of Kerala...

 novelist of the 20th century from Kerala state, South India

South India

South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...

. He is credited with having authored several important works in Malayalam literature

Malayalam literature

The term Malayalam literature refers to Literature written in Malayalam language. Malayalam is the language spoken by around 35 million people, mainly the inhabitants of the state of Kerala and the union territory of Lakshadweep Islands in India. Malayalam is a Dravidian language and thus has close...

, including novels, short stories and biographical sketches. Yanthram

Yanthram

Yanthram is a Malayalam novel written by Malayatoor Ramakrishnan. The novel is centered around the theme of civil service in Kerala. It portrays the pressure exerted on popular governments by big business and the confrontation between the bureaucratic machinery and the political forces. The...

, Verukal

Verukal

Verukal is a Malayalam semi-autobiographical novel written by Malayattoor Ramakrishnan in 1966. It is widely credited as one of his best works. It won the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award in 1967.-Plot summary:...

, Yakshi and Service Story were some of his most famous works.

Early life

Malayattoor Ramakrishnan was born on 27 May 1927 as K. V. Ramakrishna Iyer in Kalpathi

Kalpathi

Kalpathi or Kalpathy also known as Dakshin Kasi or the Varanasi of the South is an early Tamil Brahmin settlement in the Palakkad District of Kerala state, south India...

 in Palakkad

Palakkad

Palakkad , formerly known as Palghat, is a municipality and a town in the state of Kerala in southern India, spread over an area of 26.60 km2.The city is situated about north of state capital Thiruvananthapuram. It is the administrative headquarters of Palakkad District...

 in a family of Kerala Iyers. He was one of six siblings. The family settled down in a small village (Thottuva - Cheranalloor East

Cheranalloor East

Cheranalloor is a village in Ernakulam District, Kerala, India. It lies on the banks of Periyar River near Kalady. East Cheranalloor should not be confused with Cheranalloor on the northern outskirts of Kochi. According to tradition, the village was named by its earlier inhabitants who found this...

) near the banks of the Periyar River

Periyar River

Periyar is the longest river in the state of Kerala, India, with a length of 244 km. The Periyar is known as the lifeline of Kerala; it is one of the few perennial rivers in the region and provides drinking water for several major towns...

. He studied in Perumbavoor

Perumbavoor

Perumbavoor is a suburban region of Kochi city and a municipality in Ernakulam District in the Indian state of Kerala. It lies in the North Eastern tip of the Greater Cochin area and is also the headquarters of Kunnathunad Taluk. It is a Main Satellite Centres of Kochi City. Perumbavoor is famed...

 and in Aluva

Aluva

Aluva , is a suburb of the city of Kochi, situated north of the city center and a municipality in Ernakulam district, Kerala, India. Aluva is also a major industrial center of the state....

 and completed his Bachelors degree and a Law degree in Thiruvananthapuram

Thiruvananthapuram

Thiruvananthapuram , formerly known as Trivandrum, is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala and the headquarters of the Thiruvananthapuram District. It is located on the west coast of India near the extreme south of the mainland...

.

Even during his student days, he had started writing and cartooning. He became a communist sympathiser and even contested Kerala assembly

Kerala Legislative Assembly

The Kerala Legislative Assembly more popularly known as Niyamasabha , is the law making body of Kerala, one of the 28 States in India. The Assembly is formed by 140 elected representatives and one nominated member from the Anglo-Indian community...

 elections in Perumbavoor only to lose. In 1954, he married Krishnaveni (1935–1999). They had two children.

Career

He started his work as a sub-editor in Free Press Journal in Bombay

Mumbai

Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...

. He was a contributing cartoonist to Shankar's Weekly. He is also credited with the first Malayalam translation of Bram Stoker's Dracula

Dracula

Dracula is an 1897 novel by Irish author Bram Stoker.Famous for introducing the character of the vampire Count Dracula, the novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to relocate from Transylvania to England, and the battle between Dracula and a small group of men and women led by Professor...

apart from translating Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...

novels into Malayalam.

In 1954, Ramakrishnan entered the Kerala judicial service and served as a magistrate. In 1957, he entered the Indian Administrative Service

Indian Administrative Service

The Indian Administrative Service is the administrative civil service of the Government of India. It is one of the three All India Services....

 (IAS). He served as Sub-Collector in Ottapalam

Ottapalam

Ottapalam is a town in Palakkad District of Kerala state in India. It is also the headquarters of Ottapalam taluk. Situated on the banks of the Bharathappuzha river , it has a rich cultural heritage and has played host to many historic events. It is famous for having several films shot here...

, Collector in Kozhikode

Kozhikode district

Kozhikode District , formerly Calicut, is a district of Kerala state, situated on the southwest coast of India. The city of Kozhikode, also known as Calicut, is the district headquarters. The district is 38.25% urbanised...

, and held various positions in the Secretariat of Kerala, including as Member, Board of Revenue and Chairman of the Lalit Kala Akademi

Lalit Kala Akademi

The Lalit Kala Akademi or National Academy of Art is India's National Academy of Arts. It was an autonomous organization, established at New Delhi in 1954 by Government of India to promote and propagate understanding of Indian art, both within and outside the country...

. The memoirs of his long career as a bureaucrat are narrated in his work Service Story – Ente IAS Dinangal.

Malayattoor wrote his best known work - Verukal

Verukal

Verukal is a Malayalam semi-autobiographical novel written by Malayattoor Ramakrishnan in 1966. It is widely credited as one of his best works. It won the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award in 1967.-Plot summary:...

(Roots) in 1965. It is a semi-autobiographical work which tells the story of a family of Tamil speaking Iyers who settled in Kerala. This won him the Kerala Sahithya Academy

Kerala Sahithya Academy

Kerala Sahitya Akademi or Academy for Malayalam literature is an autonomous body established to promote Malayalam language and literature. It is situated in Thrissur, Kerala in India. The academy was inaugurated on October 15, 1956, by Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma, the former king of...

 Award. In 1981, he resigned from the Indian Administrative Service in order to devote his time to writing. It was during the period 1981 to 1997 that his most famous works emerged from his pen. Among his other famous novels are Yakshi

Yakshi (novel)

Yakshi is a Malayalam novel written by Malayattoor Ramakrishnan in 1967. This is about a college lecturer Srinivasan who is disfigured in an accident in his college lab. He meets a beautiful woman who is willing to accept him in spite of his sinister appearance...

, Yanthram

Yanthram

Yanthram is a Malayalam novel written by Malayatoor Ramakrishnan. The novel is centered around the theme of civil service in Kerala. It portrays the pressure exerted on popular governments by big business and the confrontation between the bureaucratic machinery and the political forces. The...

, Nettoor Mathom and Amritham Thedi. For Yanthram, he was awarded the Vayalar Award

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 . A sum of Rs.25,000/-, a silver plate and certificate constitutes the award...

.

Malayattoors novel Ponni

Ponni (novel)

Ponni is a Malayalam novel written by Malayattoor Ramakrishnan in 1967. It is based on the lifestyle of Adivasis of Attappady at Malleswaram Hills.-Plot summary:...

(1967), was based on the lifestyle of Adivasi

Adivasi

Adivasi is an umbrella term for a heterogeneous set of ethnic and tribal groups claimed to be the aboriginal population of India. They comprise a substantial indigenous minority of the population of India...

s of Attappady at Malleswaram Hills. Slash and burn cultivation practised by the Adivasis suddenly stopped by the Government forcing them to search for new jobs. The hero changes his hair style to suit the times. The courtship dance and traditional songs were depicted in a realistic way. Ponnis characters talked and sang a mixture of Tamil and Malayalam with a tinge of Kannada. Its film adaptation of the same name had Kamal Hasan and Lakshmi

Lakshmi (actress)

Lakshmi Narayan is an Indian National Film Award winning actress who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. Lakshmi has acted in more than 300 films in all south Indian languages apart from few in Bollywood. She has won a Filmfare Best Actress Award and eight Filmfare Awards South.-Early...

 in the lead roles.

Malayattoor had also authored scripts for several films. The most famous of these were Yakshi

Yakshi (film)

Yakshi is a 1968 Malayalam psychological thriller film directed by K. S. Sethumadhavan and written by Thoppil Bhasi based on Malayattoor Ramakrishnan's much acclaimed novel of the same name. It stars Sathyan, Sharada, Adoor Bhasi, N. Govindankutty, Bahadoor, Ushakumari, Sukumari, Rajakokila and...

starring Sathyan

Sathyaneshan Nadar

Manuel Sathyaneshan Nadar commonly known by his stage name Sathyan, was an Indian film actor known for his work in Malayalam cinema. He has won the Kerala State Film Award twice and is renowned for his acting skills...

, Chembarathi

Chembarathi

Chembarathi is a 1972 Malayalam film directed by P. N. Menon and written by Malayattoor Ramakrishnan. It was produced by S. K. Nair, a famous literary personality and the founder of Malayalanadu weekly. It stars Madhu along with newcomers Roja Ramani, Raghavan and Sudheer in major roles. It was a...

starring Madhu

Madhu (actor)

Madhavan Nair , commonly known by his stage name Madhu is an actor in Malayalam cinema. He was a prominent lead actor during the 60s and 70s. He has also directed and produced films, and at one time he owned Uma film studio.-Early life:...

 and Iyer the Great

Iyer the Great

Iyer the Great is a 1990 Malayalam language psychological thriller directed by Bhadran and starring Mammootty and Geetha. M. S. Mony won the National Film Award for Best Editing for his work in this movie.- Plot :...

 starring Mammootty

Mammootty

Mammootty is an Indian film actor and producer who works mainly in Malayalam cinema. He has also acted in a few Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, and Kannada films. During a career spanning more than three decades, he has acted in more than 360 films, and is only next to Prem Nazir in the number of lead roles...

. Malayattoor was also a well-known cartoonist and painter. For some years, he was Chairman of the Kerala Lalit Kala Academy. Some of his paintings are displayed in the Kerala Chitra Tirunal Art Gallery.

Apart from being a writer, he had also worked as an IAS

Indian Administrative Service

The Indian Administrative Service is the administrative civil service of the Government of India. It is one of the three All India Services....

 officer, Magistrate

Magistrate

A magistrate is an officer of the state; in modern usage the term usually refers to a judge or prosecutor. This was not always the case; in ancient Rome, a magistratus was one of the highest government officers and possessed both judicial and executive powers. Today, in common law systems, a...

 and Lawyer. Before joining IAS, he contested to Kerala assembly

Kerala Legislative Assembly

The Kerala Legislative Assembly more popularly known as Niyamasabha , is the law making body of Kerala, one of the 28 States in India. The Assembly is formed by 140 elected representatives and one nominated member from the Anglo-Indian community...

 on a Left front

Left Democratic Front

Left Democratic Front is a coalition of left winged political parties in the state of Kerala, in India. This is one of the two major political coalitions in Kerala, each of which have been in power alternatively for the last two decades. LDF is the coalition that is presently in oppposition...

 ticket. Malayattoor remained active though his later years and was working on a novel when he died in 1997 at Thiruvanathapuram. He was given a state funeral by the Government of Kerala

Government of Kerala

The Government of Kerala is a democratically elected body that governs the State of Kerala, India for a period of 5 years. The state government is headed by the Governor of Kerala as the nominal head of state, with a democratically elected Chief Minister as real head of the executive. The state...

.

Posts held

• Mattancherry
  Mattancherry
  Mattancherry is the western part of city of Kochi, India. It is said that the name Mattancherry is drawn from "Ancherry Mattam", a Namboodiri illam which then the foreign traders pronounced it as Matt-Ancherry, gradually became Mattancherry. It is about 9 km from Ernakulam town. There are...
  
   Judicial Second Class Magistrate
• Kanayannoor Judicial Second Class Magistrate
• Karunagappally Judicial First Class Magistrate
• Alappuzha
  Alappuzha
  Alappuzha , also known as Alleppey, is a town in Alappuzha District of Kerala state of southern India. As per 2001 census Alleppey is the sixth largest city in Kerala with an urban population of 177,029. Alleppey is situated to the south of Kochi and north of Trivandrum...
  
   Sub-collector
• Devikulam Sub-collector
• Ottappalam Sub-collector
• Thrissur
  Thrissur
  This article is about the city in India. For the district, see Thrissur district. For the urban agglomeration area of Thrissur see Thrissur Metropolitan Area...
  
   Sub-collector
• Kozhikode District
  Kozhikode district
  Kozhikode District , formerly Calicut, is a district of Kerala state, situated on the southwest coast of India. The city of Kozhikode, also known as Calicut, is the district headquarters. The district is 38.25% urbanised...
  
   Collector
• Health and Labour Department Deputy Secretary
• Revenue Board Secretary
• Harijan Kshema Vakuppu Director
• Civil Supplies (Food) Joint Secretary and Civil Supplies Secretary
• Vellodi Bharanaparishkara Committee Member
• Travancore Cochin Chemicals (TCC) General Manager
• Travancore Cochin Chemicals (TCC) Managing Director
• Lalita Kala Akademi Chairman
• Revenue Secretary
• Agriculture Department Additional Secretary
• Local Administration Secretary
• Kerala State Road Transport Corporation
  Kerala State Road Transport Corporation
  Kerala State Road Transport Corporation is the state-run bus company in Kerala, India. It is one of the oldest state run public bus transport services in India.-History:...
  
   General Manager
• Vigilance Secretary
• Revenue Board Member
• Industries Department Commissioner and Secretary
• Transport Commissioner

Novels

• Doctor Vezhambal (Doctor Hornbill, 1964)
• Verukal
  Verukal
  Verukal is a Malayalam semi-autobiographical novel written by Malayattoor Ramakrishnan in 1966. It is widely credited as one of his best works. It won the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award in 1967.-Plot summary:...
  
  (Roots, 1966)
• Yakshi
  Yakshi (novel)
  Yakshi is a Malayalam novel written by Malayattoor Ramakrishnan in 1967. This is about a college lecturer Srinivasan who is disfigured in an accident in his college lab. He meets a beautiful woman who is willing to accept him in spite of his sinister appearance...
  
  (Fairy, 1967)
• Ponni
  Ponni (novel)
  Ponni is a Malayalam novel written by Malayattoor Ramakrishnan in 1967. It is based on the lifestyle of Adivasis of Attappady at Malleswaram Hills.-Plot summary:...
  
  (1967)
• Dvandvayuddham (Duel, 1970)
• Yanthram
  Yanthram
  Yanthram is a Malayalam novel written by Malayatoor Ramakrishnan. The novel is centered around the theme of civil service in Kerala. It portrays the pressure exerted on popular governments by big business and the confrontation between the bureaucratic machinery and the political forces. The...
  
  (Machine, 1976)
• Ananthayathra (Eternal Travel, 1988)
• Nettoor Matham (Nettur Family, 1988)
• Mrithiyude Kavadam (Doorways to Death, 1989)
• Aaram Viral (The Sixth Finger)
• Swaram (Sound)
• Mukthichakram
• Manassile Manikyam
• Amritham Thedi
• Anju Cent (Five Cents of Land)
• Thudakkam Odukkam
• Rakthachandanam
• Rathri (Night)
• Mridulaprabhu
• Shirassil Varachathu
• Vishabeejam

Short stories

• Aadyatthe Kesu (First Case, 1952)
• Avakashi (Heir, 1956)
• Soochimukhi (One with a Needle-face, 1957)
• Verukalkkoranubandham
• Brigadier Kathakal (Brigadier Stories)
• Brigadierum Penmarukum
• Thiranhedutha Kathakal (Selected Stories)
• Arabiyum Ottakavum (The Arab and the Camel)
• Parakkunna Thalika (Flying Saucer)
• Naalu Anju (Four Five)
• Malabar Hillum Forard Roadum
• Pambu (Snake)
• Sputnikum Gotti Thomasum
• Sherlock Holmes Kathakal

Others

• Ormakalude Album (The Album of Memories; Reminiscences)
• Service Story Ente IAS Dinangal (Service Story My IAS Days; Reminiscences)
• Nammude Shikshaniyamam
• Manjamukham (Translation)
• Nadodikkappalil Nanumasam (Translation)