Maythil Radhakrishnan aka Rad Maythil is an all-rounder in

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 ...

, who writes

poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

and

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...

as well as

non-fiction Non-fiction (or nonfiction) is any document or content (media), media content that attempts, in good faith, to convey information only about the real life, real world, rather than being grounded in imagination. Non-fiction typically aims to pre ...

. He was chosen for 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.

for Overall Contributions in 2016 which he refused.

Biography

Maythil graduated in

Economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

from the

University of Kerala University of Kerala (formerly known as University of Travancore) is a state-run public university in Thiruvananthapuram, the state capital of Kerala, India. It was established in 1937 by a promulgation of the Maharajah of Travancore, Chithi ...

in 1968. For the next eight years, he researched insect

ethology Ethology is a branch of zoology that studies the behavior, behaviour of non-human animals. It has its scientific roots in the work of Charles Darwin and of American and German ornithology, ornithologists of the late 19th and early 20th cen ...

, while working as a

freelance journalist ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance w ...

. From 1976 to 1984 he worked in

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

for a Norwegian shipping firm as EDP Coordinator. For the next three years, he ran his own

computer aided design Computer-aided design (CAD) is the use of computers (or ) to aid in the creation, modification, analysis, or optimization of a design. This software is used to increase the productivity of the designer, improve the quality of design, improve c ...

and drafting center in

Coimbatore Coimbatore (Tamil: kōyamputtūr, ), also known as Kovai (), is one of the major Metropolitan cities of India, metropolitan cities in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyy ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

. Since 1987, except for a four-year stint as Editor for Youth Express of

The New Indian Express ''The New Indian Express'' is an Indian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper published by the Chennai-based Express Publications. It was founded in 1932 as ''The Indian Express'', under the ownership of Chennai-based P. Varadarajulu Naidu ...

(then

The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932 by P. Varadarajulu Naidu. It is headquartered in Noida, owned by the ''Indian Express Group''. It was later taken over by Ramnath Goenka. In 1999, eight y ...

) group, at

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram ( ), also known as Trivandrum, is the Capital city, 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 ...

and

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

, Maythil has spent his time mostly in writing; on occasions working as a freelance journalist, quizmaster and a

web developer A web developer is a programmer who develops World Wide Web applications using a client–server model. The applications typically use HTML, CSS, and JavaScript in the client, and any general-purpose programming language in the server. is used ...

. He writes popular columns in The Sunday Express (''Zebra Crossing'', now available online as a social network created by the author) and in

Madhyamam Weekly ''Madhyamam Azhchappathippu'' or ''Madhyamam Weekly'' is a weekly Malayalam–language cultural magazine published by the Madhyamam Group from Kozhikode, India. References External links Official website {{Malayalam journalism 1998 esta ...

(''Moonnu Vara'' a.k.a. ''Three Stripes''). Presently, he lives in Thiruvananthapuram. He is a widower and has a daughter named June and a son named Julian.

Writing

Maythil's first novel, ''Sooryavamsam'', published in 1970, announced the arrival of a major talent in

. Four novels and many stories and poems later, his is still a fresh voice. His oeuvre reflects the whole gamut of unrelated experience—from computers to insects—that he had acquired. The essence of his writing is summed up by K. Satchidanandan in the following words:

There are very few in Indian fiction who can compare with this author in artistic innovation, intellectual subtlety and original perception of things and of life. The three novellas here represent all that is newest in Indian fiction.

Maythil was awarded the 2015 annual award for his contributions to Malayalam literature by

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 ...

in 2016 which he refused, citing his distrust in academies.

Bibliography

Novels

*Sooryavamsam (Sun Dynasty), novel, 1970 *Bra, novel, 1974 *Chuvanna Vidooshakarute Anchampathi (Fifth Column of the Red Jesters), novel, 1974 *Hitchcockinte Itapetal (Hitchcock's Intervention), novel, 1994 *Laingikathayekkurichu Oru Upanyasam (An Essay on Sexuality), novel, 1995

Poetry

*Penguin, poems, 1973 *Bhoomiyeyum Maranatheyum Kurichu (Of The Earth and Death), poems, 1991

Short fiction

*Naayakanmaar Shavapetakangalil (Heroes in Coffins), Short stories, 1994 *Dylan Thomasinte Panth, (The Ball of Dylan Thomas) Short stories, 1994 *Sangeetham Oru Samayakalayaanu (Music Is A Time-art), Short stories, 1995 *Sooryamalsyathe vivarikkal(Describing the Sunfish), Novella, 2017

Collected works in English

*The Love Song of Alfred Hitchcock, 2004 (Translated by VC Harris)

Collected works in Malayalam

*Maythil Kathakal, Published by Mathrubhumi Books, 2013 *Maythil Radhakrishnan - Pratikathakal: Vimatam, Published by DC Books, 2003

Non-fiction (Science)

*Romam (Hair), 1981 *Daivam, Manushyan, Yanthram (God, Man and Machine) 2001

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Radhakrishnan, Maythil 1944 births Living people Writers from Palakkad Malayalam-language writers 20th-century Indian novelists 20th-century Indian poets 20th-century Indian short story writers Novelists from Kerala Poets from Kerala Indian popular science writers