Kesavadev biography for kids in english

Kesava Pillai 20 July — 1 July , better known by his pen-name P. Kesavadev , was a novelist and social reformer of Kerala, India. He is remembered for his speeches, autobiographies, novels, dramas, short stories, and films. He had formal education only up to High School levels when he had to abandon it due to financial constraints and take up part-time jobs such as a collection agent, tuition teacher and cloth merchant.

It was during this time, he was influenced by the thoughts of Sahodaran Ayyappan and participated in the Mishra Bhojanam , a grand feast organized by Ayyappan where around people including people of the lower castes sat together to eat.

P kesavadev drawing

Subsequently, he joined Arya Samaj and adopted the name Kesavadev to get rid of his last name "Pillai" which denoted his caste. He was involved with several publications, starting with Swadeshabhimani as an interim editor when A. Pillai, the then editor traveled to the UK. Malayala Rajyam , Bhaje Bharatham , Prathidinam and Thozhilali were some of the other publications he was involved with; the last one when he was an active communist.

He also wrote propaganda literature for the communist movement and served as the president of the Sahitya Pravarthaka Sahakarana Sangham Sahitya Pravarthaka Cooperative Society and Kerala Sahitya Akademi. Kesavadev published his autobiography, Ethirppu , in , which reflected his communist ideals. He was a recipient of Kerala Sahitya Akademi Fellowship.

In , Sahitya Akademi selected his work, Ayalkkar for their annual award for Novel.

P kesavadev novels in malayalam

He was also a recipient of the Soviet Land Nehru Award. Kesavadev's first marriage was to Gomathy Amma but the marriage did not last long. His married again in when he was in the sixties and working at the All India Radio; Seethalekshmi Dev, his second wife was a novelist and was much younger to him in her thirties.