Ponkunnam Varkey
| Ponkunnam Varkey പൊൻകുന്നം വർക്കി |
|
|---|---|
| Born |
30 June 1910 Edathua, Alappuzha, Travancore, British India |
| Died | 2 July 2004 (aged 94) Pampady, Kottayam, Kerala, India |
| Occupation | Writer, activist, teacher, freedom fighter |
| Language | Malayalam |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Genre | Short story, play, screenplay, poem, essay |
| Notable awards |
Vallathol Award 2002 |
Vallathol Award
1994
Ezhuthachan Puraskaram
1997
Lalithambika Sahitya Award
2002
Ponkunnam Varkey (Malayalam: പൊൻകുന്നം വർക്കി; 1 July 1910 – 2 July 2004) was a writer and activist from Kerala, India. He authored more than 120 short stories and 16 plays and is widely acclaimed as a writer who had always upheld social relevance in his works. Varkey combated against many evils that existed in the society during his days. His stories heightened the values of freedom and democracy. His name was synonymous with protest and he used his literary prowess to launch an uncompromising struggle against social injustice. Varkey was one of the pioneers of the progressive writers' forum and literary writers' co-operative in Kerala. He was the president of Kerala Sahitya Akademi and Sahithya Pravarthaka Co-operative Society.
Varkey was born on 1 July 1910, in a Syrian Christian family of Edathua village in Kuttanad, Alappuzha district (Alleppey), to Kattappuram Varkey Joseph and Annamma Joseph. After his father's death Varkey went to his mother's house at Ponkunnam in Kottayam. As Varkey himself had said, his childhood was not a protected one, but based on the dictum of the survival of the fittest. While studying in school, he was attracted to Indian independence movement and the subject matter of his early writings was related to this theme. After high school studies he passed the Malayalam 'Vidwan' examination; the then prevalent qualifying test for language teachers and joined a Catholic school, near Ponkunnam. But his relationship with the management was unpleasant and he left the institution when he was appointed teacher at the Vernacular Middle School in Pampady in 1942. Soon he resigned this job and jumped into the freedom struggle and was imprisoned.
He was associated with the Communist Party for some time and was the secretary of Purogamana Kala Sahitya Sangham (progressive writers' forum) for five years.
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