Still life in Kerala: Portraits by Punaloor Rajan

Aug 29, 2015, 06:09 IST4 min

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The image is a portrait of the writer under a mangosteen tree in his compound at Kozhikode, Kerala. His visitors would range from ragpickers to famous writers

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The lone Basheer by the sea

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Basheer by the window of a moving train

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Rajan captured his muse&rsquos love for music by taking a picture of Basheer listening to the radio in his house

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1909-1998Elamkulam Manakkal Sankaran NamboodiripadEMS, as he was popularly called, is credited for spearheading the Communist movement in Kerala. More importantly, he was responsible for getting the Communist Party of India democratically elected and was Kerala&rsquos first chief minister. He was perceived as a Communist who adopted Gandhian principles. Rajan showcased the many moods of E

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b. 1933MT Vasudevan NairPadma Bhushan awardee MT Vasudevan Nair is one of India&rsquos most versatile writers of modern Malayalam literature. The 82-year-old is also a screenplay writer and a film director. He would often visit Basheer in Kozhikode in his youth. Rajan, who lived in the same district, was a regular fixture in Basheer&rsquos house. He took a picture of the veteran writer wi

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An older MT on the sets of the film, Murappennu, (1965), which he directed

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b.1947KPAC Lalitha Her actual name is Maheshwari Amma, but the thespian and film actor came to be known as KPAC Lalitha because of her association with the Kerala People&rsquos Arts Club (KPAC), a drama troupe that had strong Left leanings. This photograph taken by Rajan was part of her portfolio. To date, KPAC Lalitha has acted in more than 500 Malayalam films

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1934-2009Kamala Das Kamala Das is Kerala&rsquos most famous poet, writer, feminist and iconoclast who converted to Islam later in life. She wrote about sex and gender boldly in Malayalam and English. In her poem, The Looking Glass, she writes: &ldquoGetting a man to love you is easy... Stand nude before the glass with him.&rdquo She wrote short stories in Malayalam under the pen name Ma

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1912-1999Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai One of Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai&rsquos most famous novels is Chemmeen (1956), which examines the motif of chastity based on a myth among the fishing community that a fisherman&rsquos safety at sea is linked to his wife&rsquos fidelity. In 1976, Thakazhi, who also wrote about the atrocities committed in the name of caste, had visited Moscow while Raj

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