Cherukad Govinda Pisharodi (26 August 1914 – 28 October 1976), commonly known as Cherukad, was a

Malayalam-language Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of ...

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while other ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

and political activist, associated with the

Communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

movement in

Kerala state Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

, India.

Biography

Cherukad was born in Chemmalasseri in

Perinthalmanna taluk Perinthalmanna Taluk, formerly known as Walluvanad Taluk, comes under Perinthalmanna revenue division in Malappuram district of Kerala, India. Its headquarters is the town of Perinthalmanna. The taluk encompasses 24 revenue villages. Perinthalm ...

to Kizheettil Pisharath Karunakara Pisharody and Cherukad Pisharath Narayani Pisharasiar. He got elementary training in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

from Guru Gopalanezhuthachan. After completing high school education, he joined as a teacher in Chemmala Aided Mappila School. He passed Vidvan Examination from

Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...

and worked in many schools as teacher before joining

Pattambi Pattambi is a town, tehsil, and municipality in the Palakkad District of Kerala, India. It is also the administrative headquarters of the Pattambi Taluk. History Pattambi was originally a part of the Nedunganad Swaroopam dynasty, which was ru ...

Sanskrit College as Lecturer. In 1936, Cherukad married Kizheettil Pisharath Lakshmi Pisharasiar. Their son K. P. Mohanan is a noted writer. Cherukad's politically charged writing was influential in defining the

Malayalam literature Malayalam, the lingua franca of the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puduchery, is one of the six classical languages of India. Malayalam literature comprises those literary text ...

of the fifties and sixties. His political life was connected with the lives of the leading politicians and patriots of Kerala. Cherukad was one of the founding members of the Deshabhimani Study Circle, a progressive literary movement in Kerala and the predecessor of the

Purogamana Kala Sahitya Sangham Purogamana Kala Sahitya Sangham (Progressive Arts & Literary Organisation), also known as the PuKaSa, is an organization of artists, writers, and art and literature enthusiasts based in Kerala. The association was formed on August 14, 1981, under t ...

. Some of his important works are ''Jeevithappatha'', ''Tharavaditham'', ''Manushyabandhangal'', ''Namal Onnu'', ''Manushya Hridayangal'', ''Janmabhumi'', ''Devalokam'', ''Manninte Maril'' (''On the Bosom of the Soil''), '' Muthassi'' and ''Sanidasa''. His autobiography ''Jeevithappatha'' (1974) received the

Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award is given each year, since 1958, by the Kerala Sahitya Akademi (Kerala Literary Academy), to Malayalam writers for their outstanding books of literary merit. The awards are given in various categories.

in 1975 and

Kendra 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 1977. Cherukad died on 28 October 1976. The Cherukad Award is an annual literary award given in his memory.

Bibliography

Novel

* ''Manninte Maaril'' (

Calicut Kozhikode (), also known as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. Known as the City of Spices, Kozhikode is listed among the City of Literature, UNESCO's Cities of Literature. It is the nineteenth large ...

: Prabhatham, 1954) * '' Muthassi'' (Calicut: Kairali Sahakarana Sangham, 1959
Read online
* ''Sanidasa'' (Calicut: P. K. Brothers, 1959
Read online
* ''Pramani'' ( Trichur: Current, 1962) * ''Marumakal'' (

Cochin Kochi ( , ), formerly known as Cochin ( ), is a major port city along the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of Kerala. The city is also commonly referred to as Ernaku ...

: CICC, 1963) * ''Muthassi: Part II'' (Trichur: Current, 1964) * ''Devalokam'' (Trichur: Current, 1971) * ''Bhooprabhu'' (

Trivandrum Thiruvananthapuram ( ), also known as Trivandrum, is the capital city of the Indian state of Kerala. As of 2011, the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation had a population of 957,730 over an area of 214.86 sq. km, making it the largest and ...

: Sakthi, 1976) * ''Maranapathram'' (Trivandrum: Chintha, 1977)

Play

* ''Snehabandhangal'' (

Quilon Kollam (;), is an ancient seaport and the fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake and is 71 kilometers (44 mi) nort ...

: Prabhatham, 1954, 2nd edition) * ''Tharavaditham'' ( Trichur: Mangalodayam, 1954) * ''Swathanthra'' (

: P. K. Brothers, 1955) * ''Manushyahridayangal'' (Trichur: Current, 1955) * ''Rakteswari'' (Calicut: P. K. Brothers, 1956) * ''Visuddha Nuna'' (Trichur: Current, 1956) * ''Odukkathe Onam'' (Calicut: P. K. Brothers, 1956) * ''Janmabhumi'' (Calicut: P. K. Brothers, 1958) * ''Mulankoottam'' (Trichur: Current, 1958) * ''Anakkettu'' (Calicut: P. K. Brothers, 1958) * ''Kutti Thampuran'' (Trichur: Current, 1958) * ''Kutti Thampuratti'' (Calicut: P. K. Brothers) * ''Vaalnakshatram'' (Calicut: P. K. Brothers, 1960) * ''Chittu Vilakku'' (Trichur: Current, 1960) * ''Kodumkaattu'' (

Palghat Palakkad (), Renaming of cities in India, also known as Palghat, historically known as Palakkattussery, is a city and a municipality in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of P ...

: Udaya, 1966) * ''Nammalonnu'' (Trichur: Current, 1969, Revised edition) * ''Adima'' (Calicut: P. K. Brothers, 1969, 2nd edition) * ''Doctor Kachan'' (Palghat: Udaya, 1970)

Poetry

* ''Aradhana'' (

: Vellinezhi, 1945) * ''Thiramala'' (Palghat: Vellinezhi, 1945) * ''Anthappuram'' ( Trichur: Mangalodayam, 1945) * ''Methaapp'' (Trichur: Mangalodayam, 1954) * ''Manushyane Maanikkuka'' (Calicut: P. K. Brothers, 1961)

Short story

* ''Jeevikkan'' (Calicut: P. M. Mohammed, 1954) * ''Mudra Motiram'' (Calicut: Prabhatham, 1954) * ''Cherukadinte Cherukathakal'' (Trichur: Current, 1954) * ''Theruvinte Kutti'' (Calicut: P. K. Brothers, 1956) * ''Chekkuthante Koodu'' (Trichur: Current, 1958) * ''Chuttan Moori'' (Calicut: P. K. Brothers, 1962)

Children's literature

* ''Karuppan Kutty'' (

: Balan, 1962, 2nd edition) * ''Oru Divasam'' ( Trichur: Current, 1960) * ''Thanthra Kurukkan'' (Trichur:

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 the city of Thrissur, Kerala in India. History The acad ...

, 1968)

Autobiography

* ''Jeevithappatha'' (

: Sakthi, 1974)

Miscellaneous

* ''Menonte Meni'' (

Ottappalam Ottapalam (also spelled Ottappalam) is a town, taluk, and municipality in the Palakkad District of Kerala, India. It is the administrative headquarters of Ottapalam taluk and is located approximately 34 km (21 mi) from the Palakkad (district ...

: published by the author, 1945) (

Ottan Thullal Ottan Thullal (or ''Ottamthullal'') is a recite-and-dance art-form of Kerala, India. It was introduced in the eighteenth century by Kunchan Nambiar, one of the Malayalam triumvirate poets, Prachina Kavithrayam (three famous Malayalam-language poe ...

) * ''Society President'' (

Deshabhimani ''Deshabhimani'' is a Malayalam newspaper and the organ of the Kerala State Committee of the CPI(M). It started as a weekly in Kozhikode on 6 September 1942 and converted to a daily in 1946. The paper now has ten different printing centres: Ko ...

, 1946) (Ottan Thullal) * ''Vella Chantha'' (Calicut: Marxist Books, 1952) (Ottan Thullal) * ''Onam Varunnu'' (

: Prabhatham, 1955) (Onam songs)

References

External links

Article by C Radhakrishnan
* Public Relations Department,

Government of Kerala The Government of Kerala (abbreviated as GoK), also known as the Kerala Government, is the administrative body responsible for governing the Indian States and territories of India, state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who ...

. Retrieved 11 April 2011

''Deshabhimani Weekly'' special issue on the birth centenary of Cherukad
{{authority control 1914 births 1976 deaths Indian Marxist writers Indian male short story writers Indian political writers Indian male dramatists and playwrights Indian Marxists Poets from Kerala Malayalam-language dramatists and playwrights Malayalam-language novelists Malayalam short story writers Malayalam poets Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Malayalam 20th-century Indian novelists 20th-century Indian poets 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Indian short story writers People from Malappuram district Dramatists and playwrights from Kerala Novelists from Kerala Recipients of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award