'A Writer Should Be Able To Reject'

Oru Cheru Punchiri. That is the nameof the film that has just won MT Vasudevan Nair Kerala’s best directoraward for this year. The title translates to mean: A Petite Smile. A likelyexpression on his face on hearing the news, because the man’s no stranger toawards (having won 16 state and six national film awards).

That petite smile, however, is a rarity. To many he is a sullen,aloof and arrogant individual. To those who have known him professionally, he isVasudevan Nair. Those close to him and his works fondly call him Vasu. Butuniversally, he is just MT.

Malayalis see him as the Malayalam sun shining on Indian literature. Hisforte? Redrafting myths into deft amalgams,using worn images as facilitators to advance familiar themes -- love, family,and village life. Malayalam literature has not seen similar stories thatinterrogate their own irony, that question aphorisms, and twists, in ambiguous meaningsinto the world we already know. Sayswriter Kamala Das (oops, Kamala Surraiya) who belongs to the same village as MT,"The grace of a paradiselost lingers on in MT's stories."

Born in Kuddalur village of Palakkad district in Kerala on 15th July, 1933,Madath Thekkepat Vasudevan Nair was the youngest son of Ammalu Amma andPunnayurkulam T. Narayanan Nair. He came into this world despite his mother'sattempts to abort the child.

MT grew up watching the misery caused by the famine, cyclone and cholera thatstruck the sleepy village onthe banks of the Bharatha river. His firstpublished article was Prachina Bharathathile Vaira Vyavasayam (TheDiamond Trade in Ancient India) in 1948. Vishu Aghosham (The Celebrationof Vishu) was his first published story. He published his first collection ofshort stories Raktham Puranda Mantharikal (The Blood Stained Sand) withthe help of his friends while he was just a chemistry student at VictoriaCollege, Palakkad. And hewon the Kerala Sahitya Akademi award when he was just 24.

Surrounded by controversies, MT has spoken very little in defense of himself."Just write whatever one has to write. Forget the rest," is his standardreply.

Outlookindia.com's Manoj Nair caught up with himwhen he was in Delhi as the chief guest at a literary fest. Here’s MT -- thewriter, the filmmaker and the man who may not have been if his mother could helpit.

Can you chart your career from your beginnings as a poet?

I was born in a village. It was one with none or very few books. We didn’thave any tradition of reading. It was considered a wastage of time. I belongedto a middle-class family. And in those days if you had read Ezhuthachan’s Ramayanthe education was considered to be complete. The local refrain was that if youcould drive a cattle across the field without allowing it to graze even oncethen, and, only then, were you an accomplished individual. Otherwise, you still hada little bit of learning to do. 

I was the youngest of the four sons in my familyand my brothers who went to school used to bring back books. I had aninclination towards reading. I used to run after all the special issues of theperiodicals. I used to cut out the photographs of writers -- S.K. Pottekat,Basheer, Karoor ... -- and paste them on the walls of my room. Then I startedwriting poems in 1946-47. 

I was in the high school at that time and the schoolhad a library. There were number of home libraries in the neighbouring villagestoo. During vacations I would walk six miles in the morning and six in theevening to borrow books from those libraries. Unlike other boys of my age I wasnot very interested in playing. There was only one game I could play alone -writing. I went on scribbling and I got involved.

Sending materials to differentpublications cost three quarters of an anna by book post. I continued sendingthough I seldom expected or got any reply. Boys float paper boats. I wasfloating paper boats too. Then there was an announcement in the newspaper … Chitrakerlamwas holding a contest. I sent a short story in one name and a poem in another. Iwas 14 at the time. One had Kudallor Vasudevan and the other V.N. Thekeppat.Later I sent a non-fiction under a different name. After two months I got abundle of magazines. All the three were published under different names.

Much later, I met the editor and reminded him of the trick that I had pulledoff. I asked him why as an editor he was not able to detect the similarhandwriting in the three manuscripts. ‘You should have noticed,’ I told him.‘I am glad I didn’t,’ was his reply.

Then there was a gap of one year. My brother went to study in Mangalore andthe family couldn’t afford to send me to college. My mother spread the rumourin the village that I was underage. I was very sad and I found solace in mybooks. I used that one year for reading. At that time Akitham lived in the nextvillage. I used his library at home. It was at that time that I began readingEnglish.

Later I depended on the Victoria College library where I went to study. WhenI returned home during vacations I would carry trunkful of books borrowed fromthe library using all the tickets that I could manage from friends. And most ofthem were very obliging. During that time Jayakeralam was being publishedand was an important Malayalam magazine. It used to carry works by P. Bhaskaran,Basheer. They started publishing my works regularly. At least, once in a month astory would get published. I began sticking to short fiction. And it stuck to me.

Do you still write poems? Do you still envy poets?

I have always envied poets. I am jealous of those who can write poetry. Theycan easily satisfy a reader with a few lines. But a fiction writer cannot dothat. To satisfy a reader he has to put down at least a 1000 words. When theperiodicals demand something for their specials or annuals all the poet has todo is write a few words but a fiction writer or a prose writer has to labourhard. Poets have it all in their mind all the time. They don’t require muchmental preparation. They are poets ’cause they can create in a moment. Writersare not so. Later they have to face flak too.

Tell us about your early years in writing. Which Malayalam writers influencedyou?

I covered the works of all the writers at that time and before me.Changampuzha Krishna Pillai, S.K. Pottekadu, Thakazhi, Ponkunam Varkey,Lalithambika Antharjanam ... I always felt that Karoor was a genius. He was asimple class teacher who was not exposed to Western literature but came up withgems. Basheer also wrote from his own experiences which was an unbelievableexpanse. All of them were my heroes. As a writer, still learning his ropes, Iadored them all.

The first English novel I read was Thomas Hardy’s Under The GreenwoodTree. I could read only slowly. I could understand one sentence at one time.It was about a village with a forest and a sprinkle. It caught my imagination.Reading it was a great revelation to me. I used to borrow lot of classics fromthe library. I read the complete works of Ibsen. And in that juvenile spirit Itranslated The Enemy of The People - just for the fun of it.

Did you try to imitate the writers you admired?

No. Never. In my case I analysed them all. My evolution as a writer wasgradual. True that there has been a change in my style since the initial period.Earlier, I was obsessed with style. I was adamant that like all beginners my styleshould be different from that of my contemporaries. Later, I discovered thefolly of pursuing individualistic style alone. The stress should be on thematerial. I discovered that each theme requires a different way of narration.But much of it was according to the demand of the material I was using. Thematerial (pause…) the theme dictates the style.

Tell us also about your method of writing. Is it true that you carry two orthree themes at the same time? Do you conceptualise all of them simultaneously? How do you arrive at a theme and develop it?

The theme comes to you accidentally. At the time when an idea strikes you itis not mature. But if it is strong enough and disturbs me very much I sit downimmediately to put down the first draft. There are certain stories that I havewritten at one go and there are some others that have seen completion after manyyears. But I have seldom been able to finish a story in one sitting. Orbeen satisfied with what came out in the first attempt. In the first draft, Ican get my first thoughts out. The outline is framed. My second writing isactually an editing stage. I start deleting most of what I write and look at allthe missing ends. I only leave those sentences on the paper that are absolutelynecessary to the theme and then I try to link them all together. On manyoccasions this process is repeated several times till I have attainedsatisfaction or have resigned to abandoning the project.

Of the number of themes running in my mind concurrently, I concentrate on oneat a time. I do not take up too many themes at the same time. When I am writingthe concentration is only on one and this goes on for a while.

Writing in the beginning was very difficult. Even as a student and later asan editor of the magazine night was the only time I had for myself. It was onlyat night that I was able to write. Sometimes I would be able to leave office only after 8 pm. An undisturbed day was a rarity. After the day's hassles, I found itdifficult to go back to writing with a clear state of mind. I found this verydifficult especially when I had to revert to the first draft and had to rewrite it.But those are the obstacles one has to encounter. I have been successful onthat front in that my personal life, or professional life, has not bogged me downand upset my writing. It has only enhanced.

What makes a writer successful?

He should be able to reject. A writer should not be carried away by thesuccess he gains initially. Several things appeal to you. As a writer it is yourability to go back to what you have written and rewrite all that you havewritten before. If you can be brutal with your own work then you leave no chancefor others to fiddle with your creation. That is important. You should never behappy with your first draft, even if it gives you immense pleasure. That joy isdeceptive. First, you should be able to satisfy yourself and be in a position toanalyse and distill the factors that satisfy you. Lot of people take up greatthemes, present excellent ideas but cannot convey. That has never happened withme. It will never happen to me. Once I am through with a work I see myselfreading it out to me. And if it conveys to me, strikes a chord within me then Iam satisfied with it. Else, I get back to work on it again till it appeals tome. Or I abandon it completely.

The writer should also not compromise in anyway. Take Asuravithu forexample. The protagonist is an uncle of mine. He was a bad character. Iunderwent a lot of mental torture and had to overcome a great conflict inside mewhile working on the resemblances. But I went ahead. I did not want to change aninch. I hate that.

Often you have talked about Faulkner. Was there an unexpressed desire to createa ‘Yoknapatawpha county' -- from Kudallur for example?

Faulkner was a difficult writer. Emulating him is a difficult ask. Though Ispoke about him a lot, admired him a lot and, to a certain extent, was inspired byhim, I never wished to write like him. Not that it was possible. There was neverany urge. Yes Kudallur was material. But I did not make any conscious effort torecreate it. To tell you the truth, I was more impressed by Hemingway. The way heused the characters he met as material for his writing. I yearned to dosomething similar. I don’t think I have met with much success. But I wanted toexplore the different aspects of life the way he did. Later in my career I gaveup that pursuit because I think I chanced upon my own way of doing this.

Are there any stories left in Kudallur. Or has it dried out completely?

The Kudalloor legends are a part of me. They are still in me. I think to tellthem all I will need more than a lifetime. Which would remain the greatestdisappointment of my life. That I would not be the only one to reveal them tothe world. But there are a few I am still working on. If I get three months justto myself I will finish one - the VITAL one. Maybe, it will see the light of dayafter March.

Your characters have all suffered neglect and yearn for revenge - a romanticoutsider whether it is Appuni, Govindankutty, Sethu, Vimala or Bhima. Is therestill a dormant rage against an exploitative system lurking inside M.T?

In a way, yes. All my life I have been chasing some questions that have upsetme. I am confronted with a big question mark when justice is denied, wheninnocence is ignored. We seldom get answers to such questions. We have to go on asking. And as long as those questions remain unanswered in me, the rage willburn inside me. 

Randamoozham (Second Turn) was a novel I wrote with lot ofpassion. I was intrigued by the treatment meted out to Bhima by everyone. Thefact that there was no mention of his qualities by Vyasa actually upset me. Hewas deliberately silent about certain things. Those pregnant silences perturbedme. I was pained to see that. Especially the two incidents that outline thebasic strength of Bhima’s character have been completely ignored. 

There aretwo very obvious instances. One is the Saugandhikaharanam episode, a popular onein Kathakali, where Draupadi sends Bhima to fetch a flower. But there is nomention later of how Draupadi reacted to Bhima’s accomplishment of the task orwhat ensued after he offered the flower. We all know that he successfullyplucked the flower. 

The other one is that of Draupadi expressing the wish to seethe world from the top of a mountain peak. Bhima kills a number of demons andovercomes lot of hurdles to scale the peak. But the epic is silent about whathappens thereafter. What was Draupadi’s reaction to this act by her lover? Didshe see the world from the summit? No. Not a word. Human mysteries, humansituations. They have always puzzled me. And I have wondered at the variousactions of people in these situations. Why do people do these things? And this is whata writer is always… the essence of any writer.

Do you think you have done justice to the depiction of the Nair community?

I have portrayed the last stages of the matriarchal society in Kerala. Andtowards the end the ideal joint family system was not there. What remained was aparody with lot of evils. And living in that kind of environs had its bearing onme. And I have shown the society as it was and commented on it too. My motherwas a great influence on my character. Which is why I have written two importantstories based on my memories of her.

The short story Sherlock was a departure from the usual M.T. story. Both inflavour and colour. Why?

I have made numerous trips to the US. But it was only several years that Igot myself to writing a story in an American background. Shelock (published inthe India Today special in 1993). I was very careful from the very beginning. Ididn’t want to write about the American life. I began with the cat as that wasthe first thing that caught my attention during that particular visit. I beganby just making casual observations about the behaviour of the cat and itsrelationship with the inmates of the house. The story turned out very well inthe end. And I agree it has certain political undertones. The most obvious oneis that of the Big Brother watching us all. And this is one of my few storiesthat is multi-dimensional.

You also go back to your past as a sabbatical. Kaduganava was thelatest. Why is that?

Nostalgia has had a special place in my life. I live for my memories. Thepast holds a lot of meaning for me for my present and my future is built onthem, there is no denying the truth of my past. So I have to keep going back toit in search of meanings for the present. Generally you go back and forth intime. But most of my trips to my village have been to see how a village can becruel. As in Sukratham, Shilalikhitham…

The month of Karkidakam has a special place in your works?

I am obsessed with nature. I won’t say I have captured all aspects of it.But the monsoons have charmed me a lot. And I have tried to capture everypossible droplet of the rains in Kerala. I have reserved a special place forrainfall in my fiction. Sometimes I have attempted to make it a character.

Theconcept of fear and darkness in the months of Karkidakam that come with theadvent of dark rain clouds have always fascinated me and fermented myimagination. It is the lean month. The month of deprivation.

And birthdays; you have written a story based on it. You spent one of yourbirthdays at Avon? How old are you and how important is age to you?

Diseases are reminders of age. The moment you fall ill you are conscious ofage catching up with you. It is then that you really begin worrying about notbeing able to complete all that you have decided to do. Birthdays have a specialplace for me. Especially the ones I have written about. Because they arereminders of love and loss. What was present there then and what is not now. Ageis important to me because the older I grow the wiser I get.

Does writing also age with you?

That is a difficult question. Because writing is so erratic. Certain thingscome out better when expressed while you are young. Other things are better ifexpressed with age behind you. The later holds true in majority of casesparticularly when you are expressing your worldview. I don’t think I became a betterwriter because I grew old. I still write the same way I did when I was twentyfour and anyway my most accomplished works are the ones that I wrote between theage of 20 and 40.