Thiruvananthapuram: Ezhuthachan Puraskaram for Mukundan

Thiruvananthapuram: M. Mukundan has received Ezhuthachan Puraskaram, the highest literary prize of the Kerala government, for 2018. He was selected for the award carrying a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh and a citation for his overall contributions to Malayalam language and literature. 

Cultural minister A.K. Balan announced the award here on Thursday. The date of the award ceremony would be finalised later. Poet K. Satchidanandan was the previous year's winner.One of the pioneers of modernity in Malayalam literature, Mr Mukundan was born in 1942 in Mahe, a former French colony and is popularly known as the writer of Mayyazhi. 

His novel, 'Mayyazhipuzhayude Theerangalil' has been widely regarded as his magnum opus. It narrated the social, political and emotional ethos of the largely inarticulate populace of Mayyazhi in their own richly evocative dialect.     

He has brought out 16 novels and ten short story collections. He was a recipient of the Chevalier of Arts and Literature by the French Government in 1998. 

Mr Mukundan has also won many top literary prizes including the Kendra Sahitya Akademy award, Kerala Sahitya Akademy award, Vayalar award, MP Paul award, Muttathu Varkey award and NV Puraskaram. He also served as the president of Kerala Sahitya Akademi from October 2006 to March 2010.

The award named after Ezhuthachan, the father of the Malayalam language, was instituted in 1993 and Sooranad Kunjan Pillai was its first recipient.