Sukumar Azhikode

Koloth Thattarath Sukumaran, popularly known as Sukumar Azhikode (26 May 1926 – 24 January 2012) was an Indian academic, orator, critic and writer of Malayalam literature, known for his contributions to Malayalam language and insights on Indian philosophy. He was a scholar in Sanskrit, Malayalam, and English languages and his work, Tatvamasi, published in 1984, is a notable work for its detailed interpretation of Indian philosophy, Vedas and Upanishads. He was a recipient of several honours including Sahitya Akademi Award, Kerala Sahithya Akademi Award, Vayalar Award, Vallathol Award and Ezhuthachan Puraskaram, the highest literary award of the Government of Kerala. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri in 2007, which he refused citing the award was a discrimination. Sukumar Azhikode, was born on May 12, 1926, at Azhikode, a coastal village in Kannur district of the south Indian state of Kerala to Vidwan Panankavil Damodharan, a teacher, and his wife, Koloth Thattarathu Madhaviyamma, as the fourth of their six children. His early schooling was at Azhikode South Elementary School and he passed intermediate examination from Rajas High School Chirakkal in 1941 before studying ayurveda at Kottakkal Arya Vaidya Patasala for one year. Subsequently, he joined St. Aloysius College, Mangalore from where he graduated in commerce in 1943. He started his career as a clerk at the Kannur branch of Indian Overseas Bank but soon quit the job to pursue a teaching career for which he completed the teachers' training course from Government College of Teacher Education, Kozhikode (GCTE) and joined his alma mater, Rajas High School, Chirakkal, as a teacher in 1948. While serving as a teacher, he continued his studies through distance education and earned master's degrees in Sanskrit and Malayalam languages. He followed it up with a bachelor's degree in education from GCTE in 1952. During the next three and a half decades, he worked at various institutions, starting with St. Joseph's College, Devagiri and St. Aloysius College, Mangalore as a lecturer, as the principal at SNM Training College, Moothakunnam, before joining the University of Calicut as the founder head and professor of the department of Malayalam. In between, he secured a PhD in Malayalam literature in 1981, for his thesis, Western Influence in Malayalam Literary Criticism. Later, he served as the pro vice chancellor and acting vice chancellor of the university. Sukumar Azhikode lived a bachelor throughout his life; his relationship with Vilasini teacher, to whom he had proposed, did not result in a marriage. He lived in Eravimangalam near Thrissur, towards the later part of his life and died on 24 January 24, 2012, at Amala Institute of Medical Sciences. He was 85 years old and was suffering from bone cancer for which he had been hospitalized since 7 December 2011. Anecdote: Azhikode had an accident in the early 2000s when he was returning to his Thrissur home after a speech. He had caught an auto from Thrissur railway station but had an accident resulting in wound to head. Since this happened in the early hours of the morning, the auto driver drove him to some of the private hospitals in Thrissur. Unfortunately since this was an accident case and Azhikode had blood over his white kurtha, he was refused treatment. The staff that refused him treatment did not realise his identity in the early morning hours. After a few failed attempts , Azhikode himself requested the auto driver to drive him to his friends house at Punkunnam. This friend was Dr TI Radhakrishnan, a renowned physician and neurologist. This is the same Doctor who had looked after some of the other literary and cultural giants such as Vailopilli, G Kumarapillai, MK Menon Vilasini, Krishnankutty Poduval of Kathakali etc. Azhikode was provided with all necessary care including Dr Nalini Radhakrishnan suturing his forehead wound. Azhikode stayed at his friend Dr Radhakrishnan’s clinic for few weeks before going home. They remained very close friends until his death.