M. T. Vasudevan Nair

Madath Thekkepaattu Vasudevan Nair (15 July 1933 – 25 December 2024), popularly known as M. T., was an Indian author, screenplay writer and film director. He was a prolific and versatile writer in modern Malayalam literature, and was one of the masters of post-Independence Indian literature. ''Randamoozham'', which retells the story of the ''Mahabharata'' from the point of view of Bhimasena, is widely credited as his masterpiece.

At the age of 20, as a chemistry undergraduate, he won the prize for the best short story in Malayalam for ''Valarthumrigangal'' at World Short Story Competition jointly conducted by ''New York Herald Tribune'', ''Hindustan Times'', and ''Mathrubhumi''. His first major novel, ''Naalukettu'' (''The Legacy''), written at the age of 23, won the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award in 1958. His other novels include ''Manju'' (''Mist''), ''Kaalam'' (''Time''), ''Asuravithu'' (''The Demon Seed''), and ''Randamoozham'' (''The Second Turn''). The emotional experiences of his early days went into his novels, and most of his works are oriented towards the basic Malayalam family structure and culture. His three novels set in traditional ''tharavads'' in Kerala are ''Naalukettu'', ''Asuravithu'', and ''Kaalam''.

Nair was a screenwriter and director of Malayalam films. He directed seven films and wrote the screenplay for around 54 films. He won the National Film Award for Best Screenplay four times, for: ''Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha'' (1989), ''Kadavu'' (1991), ''Sadayam'' (1992), and ''Parinayam'' (1994), which is the most by anyone in the screenplay category. In 1995 he was awarded the highest literary award in India, Jnanpith, for his overall contribution to Malayalam literature. In 2005, India's third highest civilian honour, Padma Bhushan, was awarded to him. He died in Kozhikode on 25 December 2024. Provided by Wikipedia