Thoppil Bhasi - Revision history

->Liz: Removing link(s) to "Soviet Land Nehru Award": Removing links to deleted page Soviet Land Nehru Award.

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Removing link(s) to "Soviet Land Nehru Award": Removing links to deleted page Soviet Land Nehru Award.

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	'''Thoppil Bhaskara Pillai,''' known as '''Thoppil Bhasi''' (8 April 1924 – 8 December 1992) was an Indian [[Malayalam]]-language playwright, screenwriter, and film director. He was associated with the communist movement in [[Kerala]] and his play ''[[Ningalenne Communistakki]]'' (''You Made Me a Communist'') is considered to be a groundbreaking event in the history of Malayalam theatre.<ref>{{cite news\|url=http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1810/18100700.htm\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011230183653/http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1810/18100700.htm\|url-status=~~dead~~\|archive-date=30 December 2001\|title=Path-breaking plays\|date=12 May 2001\|work=Frontline\|access-date=16 November 2008}}</ref>		'''Thoppil Bhaskara Pillai,''' known as '''Thoppil Bhasi''' (8 April 1924 – 8 December 1992) was an Indian [[Malayalam]]-language playwright, screenwriter, and film director. He was associated with the communist movement in [[Kerala]] and his play ''[[Ningalenne Communistakki]]'' (''You Made Me a Communist'') is considered to be a groundbreaking event in the history of Malayalam theatre.<ref>{{cite news\|url=http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1810/18100700.htm\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011230183653/http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1810/18100700.htm\|url-status=usurped\|archive-date=30 December 2001\|title=Path-breaking plays\|date=12 May 2001\|work=Frontline\|access-date=16 November 2008}}</ref>

	==Early life==		==Early life==
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	==Social life==		==Social life==
	His deep and enduring friendship with [[Kambisseri Karunakaran]] that extended through all spheres of their lives, also saw them at the forefront of some of the most significant political agitations in central Kerala. Once a staunch supporter and activist of the [[Indian Congress party]], Thoppil Bhasi soon distanced himself from the same on matters of principles and found his direction in the neo movement of Communism via the [[Communist Party of India]]. He was associated with the communist movements that took place in Kerala during the 1940s and 1950s. Branded a Subversive and a Wanted Man by the government, he was on the run and went underground during the period of 1948–52, as a top priority suspect in the infamous [[Sooranad]] Incident, with a Rs 1000 bounty on his head. He was later acquitted, and went on to contest the first [[Panchayat]] elections in Kerala. He won, becoming the first president of the Vallikunnom panchayat. He was elected twice to the state assembly contesting the State elections, from [[Bharanikkavu]] in 1954 and [[Pathanamthitta]] in 1957.<ref name="test" />		His deep and enduring friendship with [[Kambisseri Karunakaran]] that extended through all spheres of their lives, also saw them at the forefront of some of the most significant political agitations in central Kerala. Once a staunch supporter and activist of the [[Indian Congress party]], Thoppil Bhasi soon distanced himself from the same on matters of principles and found his direction in the neo movement of Communism via the [[Communist Party of India]]. He was associated with the communist movements that took place in Kerala during the 1940s and 1950s. Branded a Subversive and a Wanted Man by the government, he was on the run and went underground during the period of 1948–52, as a top priority suspect in the infamous [[Sooranad]] Incident, with a Rs 1000 bounty on his head. He was later acquitted, and went on to contest the first [[Panchayat]] elections in Kerala. He won, becoming the first president of the Vallikunnom panchayat. He was elected twice to the state assembly contesting the State elections, from [[Bharanikkavu]] in 1954 aginst Pushpathadom Raghavan a prominent congress leader and close associate to
			Jawaharlal Nehru and [[Pathanamthitta]] in 1957.<ref name="test" />

	===KPAC, theatre and Malayalam films===		===KPAC, theatre and Malayalam films===
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	==Awards and recognition==		==Awards and recognition==
	Thoppil Bhasi's dramas, ''Mudiyanaya Puthran'' and ''Puthiya Akasham, Puthiya Bhumi'' were awarded the [[Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award]], and the [[Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Academy]] awarded him its Fellowship in 1981. He is also the recipient of the Prof. N. Krishna Pillai Award and the [[Soviet Land Nehru Award]].<ref name="test"/> He also was awarded the [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Film]] for directing ''[[Sarasayya]]'' in 1971 and the [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Story]] for ''[[Mooladhanam]]'' in 1969.		Thoppil Bhasi's dramas, ''Mudiyanaya Puthran'' and ''Puthiya Akasham, Puthiya Bhumi'' were awarded the [[Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award]], and the [[Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Academy]] awarded him its Fellowship in 1981. He is also the recipient of the Prof. N. Krishna Pillai Award and the Soviet Land Nehru Award.<ref name="test"/> He also was awarded the [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Film]] for directing ''[[Sarasayya]]'' in 1971 and the [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Story]] for ''[[Mooladhanam]]'' in 1969.

	==Literary works==		==Literary works==

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KPAC, theatre and Malayalam films: Typo fixing for Wikipedia:Typo Team/moss, replaced: ,m → , m

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{{short description|Playwright}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox writer 
| name = Thoppil Bhasi
| native_name = തോപ്പിൽ ഭാസി
| image = Thoppilbhasi.jpg
| image_size = 200px
| alt =
| birth_name = Thoppil Bhaskara Pillai
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1924|04|08|df=yes}}<ref name="kpackerala.wordpress.com">{{Cite web | url=http://kpackerala.wordpress.com/2011/08/08/thoppil-bhasi-a-profile/ |title = Thoppil Bhasi | A Profile|date = 8 August 2011}}</ref>
| birth_place = [[Vallikunnam]], [[Travancore|Kingdom of Travancore]], [[British India]]<br>(present day [[Alappuzha district|Alappuzha]], [[Kerala]], India)
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1992|12|08|1924|04|08|df=yes}}
| death_place =
| resting_place =
| occupation = {{hlist|Playwright|[[Script writer]]|Film director}}
| language = [[Malayalam]]
| nationality = [[Indian people|Indian]]
| education =
| alma_mater =
| period =
| genre =
| subject =
| movement =
| notable_works =
| spouse = Amminiamma<ref name="kpackerala.wordpress.com"/>
| partner =
| children = 5 (incl. [[Ajayan (director)|Ajayan]])<ref name="kpackerala.wordpress.com"/>
| relatives =
| influences =
| influenced =
| awards = {{Bulleted_list|[[Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award]]|[[Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Academy]]|Prof. N. Krishna Pillai Award|[[Soviet Land Nehru Award]]}}
| signature =
| signature_alt =
| website =
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}}

'''Thoppil Bhaskara Pillai,''' known as '''Thoppil Bhasi''' (8 April 1924 – 8 December 1992) was an Indian [[Malayalam]]-language playwright, screenwriter, and film director. He was associated with the communist movement in [[Kerala]] and his play ''[[Ningalenne Communistakki]]'' (''You Made Me a Communist'') is considered to be a groundbreaking event in the history of Malayalam theatre.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1810/18100700.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011230183653/http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1810/18100700.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=30 December 2001|title=Path-breaking plays|date=12 May 2001|work=Frontline|access-date=16 November 2008}}</ref>

==Early life==
Thoppil Bhaskara Pillai was born on 8 April 1924 at [[Vallikunnam]] in the erstwhile [[Travancore|Kingdom of Travancore]]. Bhasi was the eldest son of Thoppil Parameshwaran Pillai and Nanikkutti Amma.<ref name="test">[http://kpackerala.wordpress.com/2011/08/08/thoppil-bhasi-a-profile/ KPAC], Thoppil Bhasi | A Profile</ref>

===Education===
His elementary education was at the [[SNDP]] [[Sanskrit]] School, and later on at the Sanskrit School, [[Changankulangara]], from where he graduated in the Sanskrit Shastri course. Knowing fully well his desire to learn indigenous medicine, his father had him enrolled at the Ayurveda College, Thiruvananthapuram. It was here that he spearheaded the Students' Agitation that led to installing many of the facilities and rights enjoyed by the current generation of students at the College of Ayurveda. He also graduated securing the Top Rank in the Vaidya Kalanidhi Examination.<ref name="test" />

==Social life==
His deep and enduring friendship with [[Kambisseri Karunakaran]] that extended through all spheres of their lives, also saw them at the forefront of some of the most significant political agitations in central Kerala. Once a staunch supporter and activist of the [[Indian Congress party]], Thoppil Bhasi soon distanced himself from the same on matters of principles and found his direction in the neo movement of Communism via the [[Communist Party of India]]. He was associated with the communist movements that took place in Kerala during the 1940s and 1950s. Branded a Subversive and a Wanted Man by the government, he was on the run and went underground during the period of 1948–52, as a top priority suspect in the infamous [[Sooranad]] Incident, with a Rs 1000 bounty on his head. He was later acquitted, and went on to contest the first [[Panchayat]] elections in Kerala. He won, becoming the first president of the Vallikunnom panchayat. He was elected twice to the state assembly contesting the State elections, from [[Bharanikkavu]] in 1954 and [[Pathanamthitta]] in 1957.<ref name="test" />

===KPAC, theatre and Malayalam films===
Thoppil Bhasi never contested any more elections post his 1957 win, to devote his entire energies to this new direction his life has set course on – theatre. He had written his first One-act play ''Munnettam'' (''The Advance'') while on the run from the state, and based on the feedback received from the underground collective, had revisited, refined and re-energised the plot from a different perspective, creating the historical ''[[Ningalenne Communistakki|Ningalenne Communistaakki]]'', both under his pseudonym Soman, for fear of revealing his true identity. The drama helped [[Kerala People's Arts Club|KPAC]] to become a force to reckon with on Kerala's theatrical arena. Later, he wrote scripts for 110 [[Malayalam films]] starting from '''Mudiyanaya Puthran''<nowiki/>' in 1961, most of them mega hits.<ref name="test"/>

His association with KPAC started with the staging of ''[[Ningalenne Communistakki|Ningalenne Communistaakki]]'', and the entire proceedings from the show were donated towards the attorney fees needed to free the rest of accused in the [[Sooranad|Soornad]] Incident. He wrote the play ''Ningalenne Communistakki'' while in hiding in connection with the Sooranad case, which resulted from a revolt by agricultural workers against a landlord. Bhasi had to write the play under the name, Soman. ''Ningalenne Communistakki'' was first staged (under the banner of [[Kerala People's Arts Club|KPAC]]) in [[Chavara]] in [[Kollam district]] on 6 December 1952. He wrote 16 plays, for KPAC, each more spectacular and socially relevant than its predecessor and it used to be said in the 60s and 70s that there wasn't a day where at least one of his plays was not staged at any part of Kerala! Such was the influence of his creative power. From KPAC, he slowly moved to the film industry (some say it was a natural progression), authoring over 100 Screenplays and turned to directing 16 movies in Malayalam language, most of them box-office successes.<ref name="test"/>

==Personal life==
Thoppil Bhasi's wedding with Amminiamma, the niece of R. Shankaranarayanan Thampi– ex-Speaker of the [[Kerala Legislative Assembly]] was solemnised when he was on the run, a wanted man for the government. In a moving tribute, aptly titled ''My Comrade'', Amminiamma, amongst other nuggets, shares her husband's principle of simplicity and frugality in every aspect of his life. She recalls Udaya studio's Kunchacko asking her to buy him a new shirt as he was fed up of seeing Thoppil Bhasi in the same shirt every time. Thoppil Bhasi seems to have famously remarked, "Chackochen, I have 8 shirts of the same colour and type, and all eight have the same 'beedi-burn' patch at the left side of my breast-pocket". He was the quintessential socialist, according to her. Thoppil Bhasi has 4 sons – Ajayan, Soman, Rajan and Suresh, and a daughter Mala. [[Ajayan (director)|Ajayan]] went on direct the award-winning Malayalam film ''[[Perumthachan (film)|Perumthachan]]'' in 1991.<ref name="test"/>

==Awards and recognition==
Thoppil Bhasi's dramas, ''Mudiyanaya Puthran'' and ''Puthiya Akasham, Puthiya Bhumi'' were awarded the [[Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award]], and the [[Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Academy]] awarded him its Fellowship in 1981. He is also the recipient of the Prof. N. Krishna Pillai Award and the [[Soviet Land Nehru Award]].<ref name="test"/> He also was awarded the [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Film]] for directing ''[[Sarasayya]]'' in 1971 and the [[Kerala State Film Award for Best Story]] for ''[[Mooladhanam]]'' in 1969.

==Literary works==
Thoppil Bhasi was prolific in terms of his creative output during his active years in theatre and movies. He authored 16 full-length plays, screenplays for over 100 movies, directed 16 movies and his autobiography was titled, Oliviley Ormakal. He was a regular contributor to the Janayugom Magazine and short stories to various publications which are yet to be collated and archived.<ref name="test"/>

=== Significant books written by Thoppil Bhasi which influenced the politics of Kerala for many years to come ===
#''Ningalenne Communistakki'': a dramha which has influenced the politics of Kerala > {{Cite book |url=https://nastiknation.org/product/ningalenne-communistakki|title=Ningalenne Communistakki-}}
#''Olivile Ormmakal'': Memoir that throws light on the lives of many unsung communists leaders > {{Cite book |url=https://nastiknation.org/product/thoppil-bhasi-olivile-ormakal|title=Olivile Ormmakal-}}
#''Thulabharam'' and many screen plays.

==Death==
Thoppil Bhasi died on 8 December 1992.<ref name="test"/>

==Filmography==
;Director
*''[[Ningalenne Communistakki (film)|Ningalenne Communistakki]]'' (1970)
*''[[Sarasayya]]'' (1971)
*''[[Oru Sundariyude Katha]]'' (1972)
*''[[Eanippadikal]]'' (1973)
*''[[Madhavikutty (film)|Madhavikutty]]'' (1973)
*''[[Chakravakam (1974 Malayalam film)|Chakravakam]]'' (1974)
*''[[Mucheettukalikkaarante Makal]]'' (1975)
*''[[Ponni (1976 film)|Ponni]]'' (1976)
*''[[Missi (film)|Missi]]'' (1976)
*''[[Yudhakaandam]]'' (1977)
*''[[Mochanam]]'' (1979)
*''[[Ente Neelakaasham]]'' (1979)
;Writer
*''[[Mudiyanaya Puthran]]'' (1961)
*''[[Aadyakiranangal]]'' (1964)
*''[[Adimakal]]'' (1969)
*''[[Thulabharam]]'' (1968)
*''[[Vivahitha]]'' (1970)
*''[[Anubhavangal Paalichakal]]'' (1971)
*''[[Chattakkari (1974 film)|Chattakkari]]'' (1974)
*''[[Sandhyakku Virinja Poovu]]'' (1983)
*''[[Ente Upasana]]'' (1984)

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/historic-play-mirrored-peoples-lives-pannian/article4173178.ece News on impact of Thoppil bhasi]
*{{IMDb name|0080270}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bhasi, Thoppil}}
[[Category:Screenwriters from Kerala]]
[[Category:Malayali people]]
[[Category:Malayalam-language writers]]
[[Category:Malayalam-language dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:Kerala State Film Award winners]]
[[Category:Malayalam screenwriters]]
[[Category:1925 births]]
[[Category:1992 deaths]]
[[Category:Indian male dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:Malayalam film directors]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:Kerala MLAs 1957–1959]]
[[Category:People from Alappuzha district]]
[[Category:Dramatists and playwrights from Kerala]]
[[Category:Members of the Kerala Legislative Assembly]]
[[Category:Communist Party of India politicians from Kerala]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian film directors]]
[[Category:Indian Communist writers]]
[[Category:Film directors from Kerala]]
[[Category:Male actors from Kerala]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian male actors]]
[[Category:Male actors in Malayalam cinema]]
[[Category:Indian male film actors]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian screenwriters]]