U.A. Khader, who died here on Saturday at the age of 85 of lung disease, was one of the important writers of fiction in Malayalam of his generation.
He was a winner of the Sahitya Akademi and Kerala Sahitya Akademi awards. The world and the characters he created around the fictional village of Thrikkottoor, through his works such as Thrikkottoor Peruma and Thrikkottoor Novellas, have been delighting readers for decades. Not many writers have been able to paint a vivid picture of life in the rustic north Malabar the way he did. Being a painter must have helped.
A painter too
Before establishing himself as a writer to reckon with in the rich, flourishing Malayalam literature, he had nursed ambitions to become a painter. He even learned it academically, from the College of Fine Arts, Chennai, where Paris Viswanathan and T.K. Padmini – both of whom would attain fame as exceptional painters — were also students at the time.
Khader was destined to choose the pen and not the brush. He had begun publishing from a young age, encouraged by former Chief Minister C.H. Mohammed Koya, who was then the editor of the magazine Chandrika.
Born to a Burmese mother and Keralite father, he came to Koyilandy, his father’s native place, after his mother’s death and the commencement of World War II. He completed his schooling at Government High School, Koyilandy.
In Myanmar till seven
Though he came to Kerala from Myanmar only at the age of seven, he had little trouble in mastering Malayalam. After writing novels like Changala , he decided to come up with something that would help him find his own distinct voice. He did that with the short story Thrikkottoor Amsham. It finally won him the recognition he craved, and merited.
He is the author of several novels, short stories, essays, travelogues, and works for children in Malayalam. Aghorasivam , Kalasam , Khuraisikkoottam, and Krishnamaniyile Theenaalam are some of his other noted works. His latest work Shatru was released in 2011. Some of his works have been translated to English, Hindi, Kannada, and Tamil.
Khader had worked in Akashavani, Kozhikode; Kerala Government Health Services; and the Institute of Maternal and Child Health attached to Government Medical College in Kozhikode. He retired from government service in 1990 while working in the administrative section of Government General Hospital in the city.
He was a member of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi and the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi, besides being president of the Purogamana Kalasahitya Sangham.
