N. Prabhakaran is a noted short story writer, novelist, poet, playwright, essayist, educationist, editor and columnist inMalayalam.[1] He won the 2022Kerala Sahitya Akademi Fellowship.[2] The eldest of the five children born to N Kunhambu and A Kalliani, Prabhakaran was born atParassinikkadavu inKannur district ofKerala on 30 December 1952. He spent his childhood days atMadayi.[3] Prabhakaran studied at Madayi L P School, Govt. High School, Madayi, Payyannur College andGovernment Brennen College, Thalassery. He served as a lecturer at the Dept. of Malayalam ofLekshmipuram college of Arts and Science, Neyyoor, Kanyakumari District, Tamil Nadu, University College, Thiruvananthapuram, CKG Memorial Govt College, Perambra, and Govt Brennen College, Thalassery, and retired while serving as the Head of the Malayalam Department ofBrennen College. The writer also served as a visiting professor of Malayalam at the University of Calicut. Prabhakaran resides atDharmadam inThalassery.
Though N Prabhakaran began writing in 1966, he established himself as a writer with the short story "Ottayante Pappan", published in 1971. The story won the first prize in the short story competition for college students conducted byMathrubhumi Azhchappathippu, the Malayalam general interest weekly, in connection with its Vishu special.
Now N Prabhakaran has 55 books, spanning a number of genres, to his credit.[4]
Editorial Core Committee Convener of Nammude Sahityam, Nammude Samooham (1901-2000) (Our Literature, Our Society (1901-2000) published by the Kerala Sahitya Akademy in 4 volumes.
General Editor of the collected works of eminent scholar M.N.Vijayan, published by Current Books, Trichur, in 2001. The revised edition of the same work is to be published by the State Institute of Language soon.
Editor of the souvenir published in connection with the 125th anniversary of Govt Brennen College, Thalassery, in 2016
Guest Editor of Samayam Magazine published from Kannur
"Ottayante Pappan" – won the first prize in the short story competition for college students conducted byMathrubhumi weekly in connection with the Vishu Special (1971)
An informal literature appreciation course to enrich the literary sensibility of readers and provide them meaningful insights on various genres of literature, literary movements, objectives of literature, benefits of literature, evolution of literary forms and evolving trends in literature is offered by N Prabhakaran. The six-day talk series titled 'Sahithya Padasala' (School of Literature) started at Alakkode in Kannur district in July 2017 under the auspices of Alakkode Readers Forum is considered as the pioneering endeavor in Kerala offering informal education in literature.[17] Classes, discussions and training in creative writing are provided by the writer. The school of literature was also launched at the writer's native place Madayi in August 2017[18]
N Prabhakaran's stories were translated into many languages, including Tamil, Telugu, Tulu, Kannada, Marathi, Hindi, Urdu, English and German. The short story "Daivathinte Poombatta"(Butterfly of the God) is his most translated and most anthologized work.
HarperCollins India published his fiction in English 'Diary of a Malayali Madman' translated from Malayalam byJayasree Kalathil in February 2019.[19]
Harper Perennial India published his novel in EnglishTheeyoor Chronicles translated from Malayalam byJayasree Kalathil in April 2021.[20]
Prabhakaran was associated with Leftist cultural and political organisations in early years. He was the firstKannur district secretary ofBalasangam, one of the largest children organisations in India. He was the chairman candidate ofStudents' Federation of India (SFI) at Brennen College in 1974. Prabhakaran was also associated with the launching of Student magazine of SFI. During the period ofThe Emergency (India) Prabhakaran was part of the outfit Students for Human Rights. At present he is associated with All India Forum Right to Education. The writer dissociates from political affiliations of late.
N. Prabhakaran's short story "Kaliyezhuthu" which was published in Mathrubhumi weekly in December 2017 invited vehement criticism from a section of school teachers in Kerala as the story was critical of the new pedagogy and the teachers' training sessions implemented in the state. While a section of teachers and educationists argued that the story exposed the pitfalls in the school education system, the others went on airing harsh comments on the writer that raised many concerns on freedom of expression.[21][22]
