R.K Narayan - A writer of the people

Compiled by Ishara Mudugamuwa

R. K. Narayan, whose full name is Rasipuram Krishnaswami Narayanswami was born in Madras (now chennai) in 1906. His father Rasipuram Venkatrama Krishnaswami lyer, was a provincial head master. Narayan was the third in a family of eight. His mother was Gnanambal. She became ill after Narayan's birth. Until he became a teenager he lived with his maternal grandmother, Parvathi and one of his uncles, T. N. Seshachalam. He spent only a few weeks each summer visiting his parents.

Narayan got his basic education from the Lutheran Mission school close to his grandmother's house in Madras. He graduated from the Maharaja College, Mysore in 1930. His father a school teacher, had to feed had a large family. Then it became Narayan's turn to support the family, soon after his graduation.

He first worked as a clerk in Mysore and then took up work as a teacher in the village school. But he wasn't satisfied with that either, because his ambition from school days was to become a writer. So he gave up his career as a school teacher and took to writing, full- time, ultimately achieving great success as a novelist and short story writer.

His first novel was Swami and Friends (1935). His other novels include The Bachelor of Arts, The Dark Room, The English Teacher, Mr.Sampath, The Financial Expert, Waiting for the Mahathma, The Guide, The Vender of Sweets, The Painter of Signs, A tiger for Malgudi and Talkative Man. Narayan's wife died of typhoid in 1939, just a few days after their marriage, which came as a huge shock to him. His novel The English Teacher was based on this experience.

In addition to these novels he wrote short stories, mythologies, fiction as well as non-fiction. A Horse and Two Goats, An Astrologer's Day and other stories, Lawley Road, Malgudi Days and Under the Banyan Tree are his collections of short stories.

His mythologies include Gods, Damens and others, The Ramayana and The Mahabharatha.

Narayan used simple and clear language in his writings and his stories were always meant for the ordinary people. Therefore anyone can read and understand his stories.

Narayan won numerous awards for his work. In 1958 he won the National Prize of Sahithya Academy for The Guide (1964). He was honoured with the Padma Bhoshan for his great service to literature and in 1980 was awarded the AC Benson Medal by the Royal Society of Literature. In 2000 he was awarded Padma Vibushan.

R.K Narayan died on May 13, 2001 at the age of 94 after a great service to the field of English literature.

(Courtesy:Internet)