Malayalam poet Akkitham wins Jnanpith award
Akkitham Achuthan Namboodiri won the Jnanpith award, one of the biggest literary awards in the country. Once an active advocate of various social reforms, Akkitham was also conscious of the underlying fact that - to quote Panicker - “his vision was not born out of any political philosophy or class war, but the result of deep-rooted learnings from his childhood.” In his long and fruitful life, the 93-year-old has penned hundreds of poems in addition to bringing out short story collections, essays and plays. He has won many awards and titles including honours from the Kerala Sahitya Academy and the Kendra Sahitya Academy. In 2017, he was bestowed with the Padma Shri. Akkitham believes in the coexistence of the physical and the metaphysical in a seamless web woven by the universe itself.
