Prominent literary critic M. AchuthanKochi: Prominent literary critic M. Achuthan (86) passed away on Sunday at a private hospital in the city where he was undergoing care for age-related ailments. The funeral will take place on Monday.
He is survived by his wife is Radha, daughter of celebrated poet G. Shankara Kurup and daughters, Dr Nandini Nair, Nirmala Pillai and B. Bhadra.
Achuthan made his debut as a literary critic at a time when Kuttikrishna Marar and Mundassery were towering figures in the field. He did not hesitate to rip apart the literary theories offered by the two.
Achuthan was the first to comment on Edassery's poetry. His work “Cherukadha – Innale, Innu” (Short story – yesterday, today) is the history of the short story literary segment of Malayalam literature. He has nearly 10 published works to his credit. Apart from the Malayalam translation of One Thousand and One Nights all his works are literary criticisms.
Achuthan was born in Mala in Thrissur district on June 14, 1930, to Vadamayil Mukkuttiparambil Parukutti Amma and Narayana Menon. He was a first rank winner for Masters in Malayalam from the Maharajas College in Kochi where he started his teaching career in 1956. Later, he taught at Victoria College in Palakkad, the Government Arts College in Calicut and also at the Government College in Pattambi.
Achuthan opted for voluntary retirement and became chief public relations officer when K. Karunakaran was chief minister. He also served as director of the State Institute of Publications, president of the writers co-operative SPCS, director board member at Kerala Sahithya Academy, member of the academic councils and boards of studies at Kerala and Calicut universities and as president of the Samastha Kerala Sahitya Parishad.
