Malayalam Novel Writer, Playwright P. Kesava Pillai – P. Kesavadev. Kesavadev along with Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai and Vaikom Muhammad Basheer are considered the exponents of progressive Malayalam Literature. He was influenced by the thoughts of Sahodaran Ayyappan and participated in the Mishra Bhojanam, a grand feast organized by Ayyappan where around 200 people including people of the lower castes sat together to eat. Subsequently, he joined Arya Samaj and adopted the name Kesava Dev to get rid of his last name ‘Pillai’ which denoted his caste.
Kesava Dev emerged as one of the makers of modern Malayalam fiction. He can be referred to as the first writer to usher in the Renaissance in Malayalam literature, by writing the novel Odayil Ninnu (From the Gutter; 1942) with a rickshaw puller as its hero. Dev was in the forefront among the writers who employed new norms in the content and characterisation in Malayalam fiction. Odayil Ninnu came as a shocking revelation that a finest piece of literature can be produced with commonplace themes and unconventional style of prose with ordinary mortals as heroes and heroines. Apart from the fact that the appearance of rickshaw puller was a thrilling experience at that time, the he was known to have started a new trait in Malayalam literature and many writers followed suit.
He has written about 300 short stories. His stories offer a very wide range and variety in theme and technique and deal with the trivialities of the ordinary people as their themes. Though Kesava Dev is primarily known for his contributions as a Novelist and Short Story writer, the full-length plays and one act plays he has written were very popular in those days and attracted huge audience when enacted on stages. His plays reflect his social criticism. Plays like Pradhanamanthri (Prime Minister) have political undertones and were popular.
