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{{short description|Indian playwright}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=September 2018}}
'''Vayala Vasudevan Pillai''' (22 April 1945 – 29 August 2011) was a [[Malayalam|Malayalam-language]] [[playwright]] from [[Kerala]], [[India]].<ref>P. K. Ajith Kumar (27 March 2014). [http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/kozhikode/tributes-to-an-inspiring-theatre-personality/article5838215.ece "Tributes to an inspiring theatre personality"]. ''[[The Hindu]]''. Retrieved 31 March 2014.</ref> He was the disciple of eminent playwright [[G. Sankara Pillai]]. He directed over 40 plays. Some of his popular plays include ''Viswadarsanam'' (1977), ''Thulaseevaram'' (1979), ''Agni'' (1982), ''Rangabhasha'' (1984), ''Varavelpu'' (1985), ''Kuchelagadha'' (1988), ''The Death of Nestling'' (1992), ''Suthradhara, Ethile... Ethile?'' (1993), ''Kunji Chirakukal'' (1994), and ''Swarnakokkukal'' (1999).

His work ''Agni'' won the [[Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award]] in 1981. He received the [[Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award]] in 2002 and the [[Sangeet Natak Akademi Award|Kendra Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]] in 2009 for his contributions to theatre - playwriting in Malayalam.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.keralaculture.org/drama-a-ksna/465 |title=Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award: Drama |publisher=Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala|access-date=26 February 2023}}</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20100222030829/http://www.hindu.com/2010/02/17/stories/2010021753770400.htm "Honour for Vayala Vasudevan Pillai"]. ''[[The Hindu]]''. 17 February 2010. Retrieved 8 July 2013.</ref> He was the director of School of Drama, [[Thrissur]] for more than two decades.

==Biography==
He was born on 22 April 1945 in Vayala, near Anchal, [[Kollam]], [[Kerala]] as the son of Neelakanta Pillai and Kalyani Amma.{{citation needed|date=September 2018}} Pillai had his elementary school from Narayana Vilasam Upper Primary School (NVUPS) Vayala. Pillai completed his degree and masters in [[English literature]] from [[Mar Ivanios College]]. On completion of his post-graduation, he entered the profession of teaching at Mar Ivanios College and proceeded to do his doctorate in Theatre and Drama. He was awarded theatre fellowships of various countries and was able to do research in theatre in well-known universities such as [[Sapienza University of Rome|University of Rome]] (1980–81) and [[New York University]] (1989-90). He was also a visiting professor of theatre in [[Meiji University]], [[Tokyo]].<ref name="Retirement">K. K. Gopalakrishnan (8 April 2005). [https://web.archive.org/web/20140223023438/http://www.hindu.com/fr/2005/04/08/stories/2005040801870200.htm "Theatre, his forte"]. ''[[The Hindu]]''. Retrieved 8 July 2013.</ref> In 2001, Vayala researched on 'The Semiotics of Beckett's Plays' at the [[Paris University]] and on 'Space in Greek Classical Theatre' at [[University of Athens]] in 2008. He also specialised on the works of Irish playwright [[J. M. Synge]].{{citation needed|date=September 2018}} In 2012, he received the [[Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.keralaculture.org/drama-ksna/457|title=Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship: Drama|publisher=Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala|access-date=25 February 2023}}</ref>

A disciple of eminent playwright G. Sankara Pillai, Vayala was groomed by the Kalari theatre movement started by Sankara Pillai. Vayala joined the School of Drama, Thrissur as assistant director and head of the department in 1984. Later, he succeeded Sankara Pillai as director of the School of Drama and retired from the post in 2005.<ref name="Retirement"/>

During his stint in Thiruvananthapuram, Vayala formed an avant-garde theatre troupe named Suvarnarekha.{{citation needed|date=September 2018}} The troupe presented more than 30 plays, including his own works and modern European plays.{{citation needed|date=September 2018}}

Vayala Vasudevan Pillai died at a private hospital in [[Kochi]], Kerala on 29 August 2011. He had been undergoing treatment for cancer. He was survived by wife, Valsala, and they do not have children.<ref>[http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/vayala-vasudevan-pillai-passes-away/article2409319.ece "Vayala Vasudevan Pillai passes away"]. ''[[The Hindu]]''. 29 August 2011. Retrieved 8 July 2013.</ref>

== References ==
<references />

==External links==
* [http://drvayala.com/ Drvayala.com]

==Further reading==
* {{Cite book |title=Vayala Vasudevan Pillai: Life, Vision, Theatre (വയലാ: ജീവിതം, ദർശനം, നാടകം) |editor=Bhanuprakash |publisher=Dr. Vayala Vasudevan Pillai Trust for Research on Theatre and Gandhian Studies |year=2014}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Pillai, Vayala Vasudevan}}
[[Category:1945 births]]
[[Category:2011 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:Indian male dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:People from Kollam district]]
[[Category:Dramatists and playwrights from Kerala]]
[[Category:Malayalam-language writers]]
[[Category:Malayalam-language dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in India]]
[[Category:Indian theatre directors]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian male writers]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Fellowship]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award]]

Vayala Vasudevan Pillai - Revision history

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