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{{Short description|Indian translator}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2025}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2025}}
{{Infobox writer
| name = K. S. Venkitachalam
| image =
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| caption =
| birth_name = Kavasserry Sheshayyar Venkitachalam
| birth_date =
| birth_place = [[Kozhikode District]], [[Kerala]]
| death_place =
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| nationality = Indian
| alma_mater =
| occupation = Translator, literary critic
| movement =
| notable_works =
| spouse =
| children =
| awards = [[Sahitya Akademi Translation Prize]] (2017)
| influences =
| signature =
}}
'''Kavasserry Sheshayyar Venkitachalam''' is a translator and literary critic from Kerala, India. He has translated 26 books from [[Tamil language|Tamil]] and 5 books from English into [[Malayalam]]. He has also written reviews for about two hundred books. He received many awards including [[Sahitya Akademi Translation Prize]] by [[Sahitya Akademi]] Government of India.

==Biography==
Kavasserry Sheshayyar Venkitachalam was born into a [[Tamil Brahmin]] family that has lived in [[Kozhikode]] for three generations.<ref name="Mathrubhumi">{{cite news |title=മൊഴിമാറ്റത്തിന്റെ തമിഴ് മധുരം |url=https://newspaper.mathrubhumi.com/features/sunday-special/sundayspecial-1.8063543 |work=Newspaper |publisher=[[Mathrubhumi]] |date=19 November 2022 |language=en}}</ref> Although born in the [[Kozhikode district]] of Kerala, Venkadachalam's mother tongue is Tamil, which helps him translate the Tamil original text into Malayalam without losing the essence.<ref name="Indian Express">{{cite news |last1=Meethal |first1=Amiya |title=Kavasserry Sheshayyar - connecting literatures of Tamil and Malayalam |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/good-news/2022/Jun/12/kavasserry-sheshayyar---connecting-literatures-of-tamil-and-malayalam-2464567.html |work=The New Indian Express |date=12 June 2022 |language=en}}</ref>

Venkitachalam was an deputy manager at the [[State Bank of India]].<ref name="Mathrubhumi"/> He took voluntary retirement from State Bank in 2001 to focus on writing.<ref name="Manorama">{{cite news |title=സേതുവും വാസ്വേട്ടനും |url=https://www.manoramaonline.com/literature/literaryworld/2023/05/16/mt-vasudevan-nair-and-k-s-venkidachalam.html |work=സേതുവും വാസ്വേട്ടനും |publisher=[[Malayala Manorama]] |language=ml}}</ref> He was a member of the [[Sahitya Akademi Translation Prize]] selection committee in 2019.<ref>{{cite web |title=Acclaimed Malayalam writer Leelavathy M wins Kendra Sahitya Akademi award |url=https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/acclaimed-malayalam-writer-leelavathy-m-wins-kendra-sahitya-akademi-award-95834 |website=The News Minute |language=en |date=29 January 2019}}</ref>

Venkitachalam, who is single, now lives in [[Karaparamba]] in Kozhikode Corporation.<ref name="Mathrubhumi"/>

==Literary contributions==
Venkitachalam has translated 26 books from Tamil and 5 books from English into Malayalam.<ref name="Indian Express"/> When he read the novel in poetic form written by Irayanb, he felt the need to translate its linguistic beauty into Malayalam. Thus, he translated and published it under the title ''Neerchalile Meenukal''.<ref name="Mathrubhumi"/> The very next year, [[Jayakanthan]]'s ''Hara Hara Shankara'' was also translated and published.<ref name="Mathrubhumi"/> It was only after these two works received attention that he began to pay more attention to the field of translation.

His translated works include [[Kamba Ramayanam]], Prathapamuthaliyar Charithram (The history of Prathapamuthaliyar), the first novel in Tamil, Kallikkat Ithihasam by [[Vairamuthu]], Tamil women's stories edited by A. Vennila, [[Jayakanthan]]'s Agraharamthile Poochha, Haraharashankara, Oh.. America, Mulankattile Nilavu, Oru Veettil Sambhavikkunnath, Oru Kavita Niyam Tettuinku, [[Azhagiya Periyavan]]'s Meenakshi and Neerottam, [[Perumal Murugan]]'s short stories, Shehnaaz Hussain's Ente Ammayude Prachodanathmaka Jeevitham, [[Kamal Haasan]]'s [[Vishwaroopam]] script, My Geeta by [[Devdutt Pattanaik]], Aaraanu Njaan of [[Ramana Maharshi]], Upa Pandavam by [[S. Ramakrishnan]] and My judgments in the light of Ambedkar by [[K. Chandru|Justice K. Chandru]].<ref name="deshabhimani">{{cite news |title=മികച്ച പരിഭാഷക്കുള്ള കേന്ദ്ര സാഹിത്യ അക്കാദമി പുരസ്‌കാരം കെഎസ് വെങ്കിടാചലത്തിന് |url=https://www.deshabhimani.com/news/kerala/translation-award-kendra-sahitya-academy-award/694432 |work=Deshabhimani |language=ml |access-date=2021-06-10 |archive-date=2021-06-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210610084433/https://www.deshabhimani.com/news/kerala/translation-award-kendra-sahitya-academy-award/694432 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="KLF">{{cite web |title=K.S.Venkitachalam- Speaker in Kerala literature Festival KLF –2021{{!}} Keralaliteraturefestival.com |url=http://www.keralaliteraturefestival.com/speakers_more.aspx?id=MTkyMw== |website=www.keralaliteraturefestival.com |access-date=2021-06-10 |archive-date=2021-06-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210610083512/http://www.keralaliteraturefestival.com/speakers_more.aspx?id=MTkyMw== |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="Indian Express"/><ref name="Mathrubhumi"/>

Venkitachalam, also known as a critic, has written reviews for about two hundred books.<ref name="Manorama"/>

Apart from translations and critics, he has written about 25 short stories in Malayalam, although none of them have been published.<ref name="Indian Express"/>

==Awards and honors==
*[[Sahitya Akademi Translation Prize]] for the year 2017 for Malayalam for translating [[Jnanpith Award|Jnanpith]] winner Jayakanthan's Tamil short story collection ''Agraharathile Poochha'' into Malayalam.<ref>{{cite web |title=..:: SAHITYA : Akademi Awards ::.. |url=http://sahitya-akademi.gov.in/awards/anuvad_samman_suchi.jsp |website=sahitya-akademi.gov.in}}</ref>
*Tamil Nadu Nalli Chinnaswamy-Thessai Ettum Award for Translation (2017)<ref name="Indian Express"/>

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Venkitachalam, K. S.}}
[[Category:Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Malayalam]]
[[Category:Translators to Malayalam]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Indian literary critics]]
[[Category:Writers from Kozhikode]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]

K. S. Venkitachalam - Revision history

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