P.F. Mathews, the writer, has had an invisible existence like his writings. As a student, his teachers hardly noticed him or even knew his name.
His first novel ‘Chaavunilam’, written in 1991, went unnoticed even though the few who read it hailed it as a remarkably unique work in the language. Even after winning the National Award for Best Screenplay for ‘Kutty Srank’ in 2010, he has remained away from spotlight.
But, things seem to be changing with the release of his second novel ‘Iruttil Oru Punyalan’ three months ago. Already into the second edition, after having received rave reviews in social media, it has rekindled interest in his first novel, 25 years after it was written.
Both books share a common landscape, rooted amid Kochi’s Latin Christian community. For the reader, it is an unforgiving but enriching leap into an abyss of evilness and death.
“Chaavunilam was serialised in Kalakaumudi weekly in 1991 and later published as a book. Much of the reaction then was dismissive, with some even calling it a ‘novel that smells of corpses’. Peru, one of the main characters, is someone who has only evilness within him. A majority of the readers cannot accept a book like that. The non-linear narrative, a novelty then, did not help too. But now, the sensibility of the readers seems to have changed, going by the reactions to the new novel,” says Mathews.
‘Iruttil Oru Punyalan’, a shade less darker than the first, takes a leap in its narrative style, with each chapter being presented through the eyes of different characters, even the dead ones. In 140-odd pages, condensed to the barely essential details, he conveys a vast magical world with portals into the netherworld.
The idea of Emmanuel, the central character of the novel who remains alive even after his death, has been with Mathews since 1991. Emmanuel then became a character in the script ‘Antichrist’ that Mathews wrote for Lijo Jose Pellissery. The film never got made, with superstitious producers scared away by the title.
Mathews grew up in a Latin Christian family, where there was no reading beyond the Bible and textbooks. His father, a boatman, was of the opinion that reading could corrupt young minds.
“I started reading literary weeklies from a house in the neighbourhood. In school, I used to write scripts for plays. I read a lot during school and college days. Writers like Pessoa and Milan Kundera have influenced my writings. I used to like Marquez’s earlier writings, but later got bored,” he says.
He began his stint in writing for television serials with ‘Sararaanthal’ and later, the much feted ‘Mikhayelinte Santhathikal’ in Doordarshan, which was the launch-pad for actor Biju Menon. He has penned scripts for several popular serials since then.
Fresh from his retirement from the AG’s office this February, he is in talks with Lijo Jose Pellissery for a thriller starring Mammootty. Also on the anvil is a third edition for ‘Chaavunilam’, the last remaining copies of which have disappeared from bookshops.
“I don’t believe in marketing my books or writing for the sake of the market. Like minded readers will surely mine out these books,” he says.
Fresh from his retirement from the AG’s office this February, Mathews is in talks with Lijo Jose Pellissery for a thriller starring Mammootty
