On October 15, 2020, renowned Malayalam poet, namely, Akkitham Achuthan, popularly known as Akkitham, passed away at 94 in Thrissur, Kerala due to age-related ailments. Born on March 19, 1926, he wrote his first poem when he was just eight. He is known for his simple writing. As a script writer for All India Radio, Kozhikode, he worked from 1956 till 1975, became the editor, and retired from his post in 1985.
In 1950s, he became a household name after the publication of one of the first modernist poems of Malayalam literature, Irupatham Noottandinte Ithihasam, a khandakavya, which not only gained popularity but also won him the Sanjayan Award in 1952.
Besides, he received many awards, such as the Ezhuthachan Award, Odakkuzhal Award, Vallathol Award, Vayalar Award, and Aasan Prize, etc. He was also awarded with the 55th Jnanpith Award. He received a Padma Shri for his critical essays and short stories, and also won the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1973.
About His Epic Poem: His epic poem, Irupatham Nootandinte Ithihasam was an elegy that came out of a remorseful mind, faced with the violence, unleashed in the name of revolution. It was one of the rare works that nudged one into reflection. Some of the couplets came to be part of everyday Malayalam. He proclaims tears as an invaluable panacea because of its ability to wash away the cruelties of the ruling class. The poet also hopes that the tears of mercy will wash away the blood stains left by violence and injustice. He mourns the loss of his light the day he learned about the injustice accumulated over centuries of feudalism and capitalism.
He ends the poem with a eulogy to the human spirit that refused to be confined to ideologies. Therefore, he puts forward a value system based on love as unconditional love is the pivot of the world he dreams of. The poem is still relevant even after the passage of more than a half century.
Courtesy: India Today, onmanorama.com