Tamil literary stalwart passes away at 71

Balakumaran has penned over 150 novels and 100 short stories, besides screenplay and dialogues for many Tamil films. A recipient of several awards, including the Tamil Nadu government’s Kalaimamani award, Balakumaran, who had twice undergone bypass surgeries earlier, was admitted to Kauvery hospital due to breathing problems due to a lung infection a couple of days back, family sources said. 

Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and several tamil writers expressed their condolences and said his death was a big loss to the Tamil literary field. 

Known for his powerful scripts which had an instant recall value, Balakumaran was born on July 5, 1946 at Pazhamarneri village in Thanjavur district. His popular novels included ‘Gangai Konda Chozhan’ and ‘Mercury Pookkal’, which bagged the ‘Illakkiya Sindhanai’ award among others. 

His short stories have appeared in popular Tamil magazines like Ananda Vikatan, Kalki and Kumudam. Balakumaran had also penned screenplay and dialogues for several films, including Kamal Haasan starrer ‘Nayagam’ and ‘Guna’, Rajinikanth’s hit film “Baasha” besides directing the hit ‘Idhu Namma Aalu’. 

Recalling the ‘Thiru Vi KA’ award presented to him on January 16 this year, still fresh in his minds, the Chief Minister said he had received several awards and had carved a niche for himself in the literary field.