Neela Padmanabhan

Biography:

Neela Padmanabhan, born on April 26, 1938, is a Tamil writer hailing from Nagercoil, India. He also writes in Malayalam.

Padmanabhan pursued a B.Sc in Physics and obtained a degree in Electrical Engineering from Kerala University. He worked at the Kerala State Electricity Board until his retirement in 1993. His notable literary debut was with the novel “Thalaimuraigal” (Generations). He has authored 20 novels, 10 collections of short stories, 4 volumes of poetry, and 7 essay collections in Tamil. Additionally, he has published a novel, four collections of short stories, and a single essay collection in Malayalam. He has also contributed to English literature with a few works.

Padmanabhan served as the Tamil editor at Sahitya Akademi from 1985 to 1989 and later as the convener of the Akademi’s Tamil advisory board from 1998 to 2002. He was honored with the Sahitya Akademi Award for Tamil in 2007 for his novel “Ilai uthir kaalam” (Autumn). He had previously won the Sahitya Akademi Translation Prize in 2003 for translating Ayyappa Paniker’s works into Tamil.

In 2010, his novel “Thalaimuraigal” was adapted into the Tamil film “Magizhchi” (Happiness). One of his most renowned works is the novel “Pallikondapuram” (Where the Lord Sleeps).

Padmanabhan currently resides in Thiruvananthapuram.