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Book Review
Collection of plays and stories
EDASSERIYUDE NADAKANGAL: Edasseri Govindan Nair; Rs. 175.
CHERUKADINTE CHERUKATHAKAL: Cherukad; Rs. 95. Both pub. by Current Books, Round West, Thrissur-680001.
EDASSERI GOVINDAN Nair (1906-74) and Cherukad (Govinda Pisharodi, 1914-76) rank high among the literary activists of the last century.
THE FIRST book is a collection of Edasseri's plays including three full-length plays, 11 one-act plays and two radio plays. He wrote most of them during a turbulent period in politics. He established a firm reputation with his very first play, "Koottukrishi" (joint farming), which appeared in 1950. Written and staged to propagate the socialist concept of agriculture, it electrified the peasantry in Malabar. Re-reading the play half-a-century later, the propagandist element seems to stand out, but the story line and dialogues still carry it through.
Later on he turned to radio plays. Both the radio plays "Ghatolkachan" and "Jarasandhante putri" are based on themes drawn from epics.
Cherukad did not stay away from any branch of literature. Apart from short stories, plays and novels, he also tried his hand at the indigenous dance drama, "thullal". His stories reflect the changing social scene of the time. He was an agent of change as well as a chronicler of it.
There are 26 short stories in Cherukad's collection, which was first published in 1954. A teacher by profession, he weaves many stories around the lives of teachers. The story "Inter class", which raises the question whether the purpose of literature is pleasure or propaganda, reflects his literary philosophy. The evocative introduction by M. T. Vasudevan Nair and the critical study by K. P. Sankaran enhance the value of this publication.
B.R.P. BHASKAR
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