Namboothiri
Karuvattu Mana Vasudevan Namboothiri (13 September 1925 – 7 July 2023), better known as Artist Namboothiri or simply Namboothiri, was an Indian painter and sculptor, known for his line art and copper relief works. He illustrated for many Malayalam writers such as Thakazhy Shivasankara Pillai, Kesavadev, M. Vasudevan Nair, Uroob, S. Pottekkatt, Edasseri Govindan Nair, and V.K.N, and was one of the most prolific literary illustrators of India. He was also a chairman of the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi.
Also recorded as K.M. Vasudevan Namboodiri · K. M. Vasudevan Namboothiri · Karuvattu Mana Vasudevan Namboothiri · Namboodiri
Namboothiri

KannanShanmugam,Shanmugam studio,Kollam · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Birth Name
- K.
- Born
- 13 September 1925
- Birthplace
- Ponnani, Madras Presidency, British India
- Died
- 7 July 2023
- Place of death
- Kottakkal, Malappuram, Kerala, India
- Spouse
- Mrinalini
- Known for
- Paintings, sculptures
- Awards
- * 1974 Kerala State Film Award for Best Art Director
- Nationality
- India · British Raj · Dominion of India
- Occupation
- painter · cartoonist
- Education
- Government College of Fine Arts, Chennai · College of Fine Arts and Thrissur
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Documentary summary
Karuvattu Mana Vasudevan Namboothiri (13 September 1925 – 7 July 2023), better known as Artist Namboothiri or simply Namboothiri, was an Indian painter and sculptor, known for his line art and copper relief works. He illustrated for many Malayalam writers such as Thakazhy Shivasankara Pillai, Kesavadev, M. Vasudevan Nair, Uroob, S. Pottekkatt, Edasseri Govindan Nair, and V.K.N, and was one of the most prolific literary illustrators of India. He was also a chairman of the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi.
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Namboothiri was a national of the British Raj and the Dominion of India and a cartoonist and painter. The cartoonist was born in Ponnani. Namboothiri was educated at College of Fine Arts, Thrissur and Government College of Fine Arts, Chennai.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 02 October 2026
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gnd · 136739180 · wikidata · Q12062307
In this article
Biography
Biography
The Akademi awarded him the Raja Ravi Varma Award in 2003. He was also a recipient of the Kerala State Film Award for Best Art Director.
Key facts
Key facts
• Other Names — Artist Namboothiri • Birth Name — K. M. Vasudevan Namboothiri • Born — 13 September 1925 • Birthplace — Ponnani, Madras Presidency, British India • Died — 7 July 2023 • Place of death — Kottakkal, Malappuram, Kerala, India • Spouse — Mrinalini • Children — 2 • Known for — Paintings, sculptures • Awards — * 1974 Kerala State Film Award for Best Art Director • 2003 Raja Ravi Varma Award • 2004 Bala Sahitya Award
Biography
Biography
• Illustration — Sculptures at Sukapuram temple were early inspirations for Namboothiri Namboothiri was born at Karuvattu Mana in Ponnani, in Malappuram district of the south Indian state of Kerala to Parameshwaran Namboothiri and Sreedevi Antharjanam, as their eldest son. During his childhood, he was influenced by the sculptures at the Sukapuram temple near his house. "I had this urge to draw and mould sculptures after seeing these," Namboothiri said. In order to pursue education in art, he moved to Chennai, with financial assistance from Krishnan Namboodiri of Varikkasseri Mana. There, he joined the Government College of Fine Arts, Chennai where he had the opportunity to study under Debi Prasad Roy Chowdhury, the founder and principal of the institution, and S. Dhanapal. It was during this period that he came into contact with K. C. S. Paniker, who would exercise influence over the young artist. Namboothiri secured two diplomas, one in fine arts and the other in applied arts, from the Government College of Fine Arts in 1954 and after staying at Cholamandal Artists' Village of K. C. S. Paniker where he completed a six-year course in one year, he returned to Kerala to join the newspaper Mathrubhumi as a staff artist in 1960. He stayed with Mathrubhumi until 1982, illustrating the literary works of most of the major writers in Malayalam, including Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai, Kesavadev, M. T. Vasudevan Nair, Uroob, S. K. Pottekkatt, Edasseri Govindan Nair, and V.K.N. In Mathrubhumi, he published Naniyammayum Lokavum, which became a popular pocket cartoon series. In 1982, he moved to news magazine Kalakaumudi where he provided illustrations before shifting to The New Indian Express's newsweekly, Samakalika Malayalam Vaarika. Namboothiri was married to Mrinalini and the couple had two sons, Parameshawaran and Vasudevan. The family lived in Naduvattam in Malappuram district. Namboothiri died on 7 July 2023, at age 97.
Gallery
Gallery
• Illustration — Metal relief 1 • Illustration — Metal relief 2 • Illustration — Metal relief 3 • Illustration — Metal relief 5 • Illustration — Metal relief 6
Identity
Identity
Namboothiri is recorded as a citizen of Dominion of India. Recorded with the occupation cartoonist. Recorded with the occupation painter.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1925
Namboothiri was born on 13 September 1925.
2023
Namboothiri died on 7 July 2023.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Namboothiri was born at Ponnani.
Birthplace
Ponnani.
Birth place
Namboothiri was born in Ponnani.
Birthplace
Publications
• Randamoozham by M. T. Vasudevan Nair, illustrated by Namboothiri (Current Books). • Calicut: the City of Truth revisited by M. G. S. Narayanan, illustrations by Artist Namboodiri and Madanan, 2006 (University of Calicut). • Lore and Legends of Kerala: Selections from Kottarathil Sankunni's Aithihyamala, translated from Malayalam by T. C. Narayan, illustrated by C. N. Karunakaran and Namboodiri, 2009 (Malayala Manorama & Oxford University Press). • Antharjanam: Memoirs of a Nambooodiri Woman by Devaki Nilayamgode, translated from Malayalam by Indira Menon and Radhika P. Menon, illustrations by Namboodiri, 2011 (Oxford University Press). • Sketches: the memoir of an artist, by K.M. Vasudevan Namboodiri, foreword by M.T. Vasudevan Nair, translated from the Malayalam by Gita Krishnankutty, 2019 (Penguin Books India).
Legacy
• Illustration — Kerala Lalithakala Akademi Durbar Hall Ground Art Gallery One of Namboothiri's first professional assignments was during his Chennai days, when he assisted K. C. S. Paniker to complete an oversize painting for the Indian Railways. One of the most prolific literary illustrators of India, he turned to copper relief work after resigning from Mathrubhumi and soon organized an exhibition consisting of 12 relief works. Later, he made some of his most notable drawings at Kalakaumudi when he illustrated Randamoozham of M. T. Vasudevan Nair; he stated later that these illustrations provided him with satisfaction. Namboothiri's illustrations of his characters prompted V.K.N. to call the artist as the Paramashivan of line sketches (The Lord Shiva of line drawings). He was also a proponent of "finger painting". Among his copper relief works, he has created a series based on various events from Mahabharata, entitled Lohabharata, and another based on Parayi Petta Panthirukulam. He had created a few large sculptures for Cholamandal which include Modern Family on a Scooter and Maithuna as well as a 500 ft long outdoor drawing featuring incidents from the Indian freedom movement. Namboothiri had served as the chairman of the Kerala Lalitakala Academy twice, and it was during his tenure that the academy constructed and moved to an owned building in Thrissur. His contributions were also reported in the conversion of the Durbar Hall Ground in Kochi into an art gallery. He had embarked on a self-appointed mission of pictorially documenting the cities of Kerala. The project, entitled Nagarangal (The Cities), began with Kochi.
Primary material
Documents and archives
authority file
- Gemeinsame Normdatei 136739180, Namboothiri, Rajeev.
General reference · Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
institutional register
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q12062307: Namboothiri
General reference · Wikimedia Foundation
Honours
• Illustration — Artist Namboothiri Film director and cartoonist G. Aravindan was a friend of Namboothiri, and when Aravindan made his debut movie, Uttarayanam, he invited Namboothiri to work as the art director of the film. The film went on to receive five Kerala State Film Awards in 1974, including the Award for Best Art Director for Namboothiri. Kerala Lalithakala Akademi awarded Namboothiri the Raja Ravi Varma Award in 2003 and he became the third recipient of the award which was instituted in 2001. The Kerala State Institute for Children's Literature awarded him the Bala Sahitya Award for best illustration for his work in Kuttikalude Ramayanam (Ramayana for children) in 2004. A documentary on the life of the artist, Namboodiri-Varayude Kulapathy (Namboodiri — The Emperor of Lines) was made by Ask Movies. The 44-minute documentary film, directed by Binuraj Kalapeedhom, covers the artist's life from his childhood, through his Chennai days, and to his eighties. Varayum Vaakkum, (Lines and Words) is a book published by N. P. Vijayakrishnan, compiling Namboothiri's reminiscences and some of his drawings. Namboothiriyude Sthreekal (The Women of Namboothiri) is another book published by Vijayakrishan and includes several of the artist's line drawings of women and a foreword by Mohanlal.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Artist Namboothiri Honoured. The New Indian Express. 24 August 2015.
- 2.Ode to a genius. The Hindu. 5 December 2012.
- 3.Eminent illustrator Artist Namboothiri no more. Press Trust of India.
- 4.Raja Ravi Varma Puraskaram Kerala Lalithakala Akademi. lalithkala.org.
- 5.Namboothiri (artist) – Veethi profile. veethi.com. 13 March 2019.
- 6.asianetnews. Artist Namboothiri: PaadaMudra 17 Oct 2015. YouTube. 17 October 2015.
- 7.Manmadhan, Prema. The life and times of Artist Namboodiri. The Hindu. 15 December 2011.
- 8.Manorama Online. Exclusive interview on his 90th Birthday. YouTube. 9 September 2015.
- 9.Living lines – Kerala's artist Namboothiri at 91. Times of India Blog. 12 September 2016.
- 10.Artist Namboothiri – the maestro painter of Kerala. Kerala Tourism.
- 11.Leading lights, Kerala Tourism. 26 July 2011.
- 12.Enduring sketches frozen in the canvas of time. OnManorama.
- 13.Vasudevan Namboodiri. Cholamandal Artists' Village. 13 March 2019.
- 14.Magic of Namboothiri sketches. www.mathrubhumi.com.
- 15.Artist Namboothiri, Residence, Personlities, Sculptor, Line Sketches. IndiaVideo. 13 March 2019.
- 16.On Manorama. Artist Namboothiri, doyen of line sketches, passes away. 7 July 2023.
- 17.Working with M.T was a pleasure and has influenced me in many different ways -Artist Namboothiri. keralaliteraturefestival.com.
- 18.asianetnews. Artist Namboothiri in Yathra. YouTube. 1 November 2015.
- 19.Art exhibition attracts crowds. The Hindu. April 2021.
- 20.Vasudevan Namboodiri's Paintings. Cholamandal Artists' Village. 13 March 2019.
- 21.official website of INFORMATION AND PUBLIC RELATION DEPARTMENT OF KERALA. 3 March 2016.
- 22.Kerala News : Raja Ravi Varma Award for Artist Namboodiri. The Hindu. April 2021.
- 23.വിവിധ വര്ഷങ്ങളിലെ പുരസ്കാര ജേതാക്കള്. Kerala State Institute for Children's Literature. 13 March 2019.
- 24.Manmadhan, Prema. The life and times of Artist Namboodiri. The Hindu. 15 December 2011.
- 25.Artist Namboothiri: Varayum Vaakkum. www.indulekha.com.
- 26.Namboothiriyude Sthreekal. www.indulekha.com. 13 March 2019.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
authority file
Gemeinsame Normdatei 136739180, Namboothiri, Rajeev.Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Secondary witnessinstitutional register
Wikidata, structured authority record Q12062307: NamboothiriWikimedia Foundation
General reference
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Knowledge graph
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