M. T. Vasudevan Nair

Madath Thekkepaattu Vasudevan Nair (born 15 July 1933), popularly known as M.T., is an Indian author, screenplay writer and film director. He is a prolific and versatile writer in modern Malayalam literature, and is one of the masters of post-Independence Indian literature. At the age of 20, as a chemistry undergraduate, he won the prize for the best short story in Malayalam at World Short Story Competition conducted by ''The New York Herald Tribune''. His first major novel ''Naalukettu'' (''Ancestral Home''- translated to English as ''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 Prodigal Son'' - translated to English as ''The Demon Seed'') and ''Randamoozham'' ('The Second Turn' translated to English as 'Bhima - Lone Warrior' ). The deep emotional experiences of his early days have gone into the making of MT's novels. Most of his works are oriented towards the basic Malayalam family structure and culture and many of them were path-breaking in the history of Malayalam literature. His three seminal novels on life in the matriarchal family in Kerala are ''Naalukettu'', ''Asuravithu'', and ''Kaalam''. ''Randamoozham'', which retells the story of the ''Mahabharatha'' from the point of view of Bhimasena, is widely credited as his masterpiece.

M. T. Vasudevan Nair is a script writer and director of Malayalam films. He has directed seven films and written 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. He was awarded the highest literary award in India, Jnanpith, in 1995 for his overall contribution to Malayalam literature. In 2005, India's third highest civilian honour Padma Bhushan was awarded to him. He has won numerous other awards and recognition including Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award, Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award, Vayalar Award, Vallathol Award, Ezhuthachan Award, Mathrubhumi Literary Award and O. N. V. Literary Award. He was awarded the J.C. Daniel Award for lifetime achievement in Malayalam cinema for the year 2013. He served as the editor of ''Mathrubhumi Illustrated Weekly'' for several years. In 2022, he was honoured with the maiden Kerala Jyothi Award, the highest civilian award given by the Kerala Government. Provided by Wikipedia