''Kayar'' () is a 1978

Malayalam 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 ...

epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...

novel written by Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai. Widely considered one of the most seminal works in Malayalam literature, ''Kayar'' received many major literary awards, including the Vayalar Award.

Plot summary

Set in

Kuttanad Kuttanad is a river delta landscape region in the state of Kerala, India, known for its vast paddy fields and geographical peculiarities. It is in the Districts of Alappuzha, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta. The region has the lowest altitude in ...

, the novel traces the evolution of the central Travancore society from the early 19th century to the mid-twentieth century. It covers more than two centuries of Kerala life, encompassing six generations of characters. The historic transformation of man's relationship with land, as also between man and man, men and women and even man and God, forms the staple theme of ''Kayar''.

Background

The idea of a novel which contains the vignettes of social life in Kerala stayed in the author's mind for many years. "Two hundred and fifty years of Kerala life flowed past my mind's eye. But I needed a form. I could find no help from the Western classics," Thakazhi reminisces. For years he carried the "germ" inside his head. One night, as he lay sleepless in bed, the

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

epic with its episodic structure drifted into his mind as a possibility. The next day he started work on Kayar. It took him three years to complete the book.

Translations

* ''Coir'': English translation by N. Sreekantan Nair;

Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of the Indian government. Its off ...

; 1998 * ''Kayiru'': Tamil translation by C.A. Balan;

; 2003 * ''Hagga'': Kannada translation by K.K. Nair and Ashok Kumar;

; 2007 * ''Rassi'' (1995), Hindi translation by Sudhanshu Chaturvedi. For this, Chaturvedi has won Sahitya Akademi Award for translation.

Adaptations

*'' Bhayanakam'' (2018), directed by Jayaraj.

Awards

* 1980: Vayalar Award

References

External links

''Kayar''
at DC Books official website
Review of the English translation by M. Mukundan
(''India Today'')

(''The Hindu'')

(''The Hindu'') {{Vayalar Awards Malayalam novels Epic novels Novels set in Kerala Novels by Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai DC Books books Indian novels adapted into films 1978 Indian novels Jnanpith Award–winning works