Malayalam writer Azhikode cremated

Kannur: The mortal remains of eminent Malayalam writer and critic Sukumar Azhikode, who dominated Kerala's cultural scene as a literary critic for over five decades, were consigned to flames at Payyambalam beach with full state honours in Kannur on Wednesday.

Union ministers, state ministers, government officials and a large number of the public were present at the funeral to pay their last respect to the departed soul.

Earlier, members of the public thronged both sides of the road as the body of Azhikode, kept at the Kannur town hall for the people to pay homage, was brought in an open vehicle to the Payyambalam beach.

A section of the writer's followers and Sahitya Akademi office-bearers had wanted the cremation to be held at the cultural capital-Thrissur, Azhikode's home for the past few years.

The government had decided to accept the wishes of Azhikode's relatives, to avoid a controversy over his resting place.

A bachelor, Azhikode (86), had died yesterday at Amala Cancer Centre at Thrissur. He was undergoing cancer treatment there for the past few weeks.

A recipient of high literary honours including the Kendra Sahitya Academy award, Azhikode, a Gandhian till the end of his life, hit national headlines a few years back by declining to accept Padma Shri, holding such honours went against the spirit of Indian constitution which saw every citizen as equals.

A deeply-read scholar and acclaimed authority on Indian thought and literature, his magnum opus 'Tatvamasi,' an intellectual exploration of the eternal wisdom of the Vedas and Upanishads, is a widely appreciated work.

Azhikode s major critical works like "Asante SeethaKavyam," a detailed textual study of poet Kumaran Asan's 'Chinthavishtayaya Seetha' (Seetha immersed in thought) are considered as classics of modern Malayalam literature.

Among those present at Payyabalam included Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Mullappally Ramachandran, Union Minister of State for Power, KC Venugopal, Kerala Assembly speaker G Karthikeyan and CPI(M) State Secretary Pinarayi Vijayan.