Madhavikutty’s transformation to Kamala Surrayya

Despite her death almost a decade ago, Kamala Surrayya, the outspoken poet, the enigmatic mistress of words—still has a certain allure for readers. Kamala opened out to a generation about a topic that was taboo at the time. Kamala was clearly a pioneer in her day, defying all traditions.

Kamala Surrayya; Image source: achhigyan

Kamala was clearly a pioneer in her day, defying all traditions. Kamala's writings provide insight into the feminine psyche, mental process, her battles with the patriarchal system to which she was enslaved, her search for love, and her acceptance of the body's carnal desires. Poems that are carefully chosen in order to win prizes in recitation competitions, poems that feel like a pinch of fresh thinking that was very much required to the writing scene at that time.

Kamala Das was born on March 31, 1934, in Punnayurkulam, Ponnani taluk, Malabar District, British India (now Thrissur district, Kerala) to V. M. Nair, managing editor of the widely circulated Malayalam daily Mathrubhumi, and Nallappat Balamani Amma, a noted Malayali poet. Born into the Nallapapattu Nayar family, a  traditionally matrilineal and matriarchal, with Nayar women enjoying greater personal liberties, decision-making ability (although decisions were still confined to the household), and the birth of a daughter in Nayar households was a joyous occasion.

Her liberal depiction of female sexuality made her an iconoclast in her generation's popular culture. She split her childhood between the Nallappat ancestral house in Punnayurkulam and Calcutta, where her father worked as a senior officer for the Walford Transport Company, which marketed Bentley and Rolls Royce automobiles.

Kamala worked as a syndicated columnist for a short time because her family was having financial troubles and the work paid more than poetry. Her columns were quite popular, and she wrote on women's issues, childcare, and politics. Her father was a well-known journalist who attempted to persuade her editor to stop publishing her work, but Kamala stood firm.

Ente Katha ('My Story') was her autobiography, which she published in 1973. It created a stir in India and appeared to be a cathartic experience for Kamala. Menstruation, sexuality, love and lust, desire, intimacy, and a 'brush with love' with another girl soon before her arranged marriage were all topics she addressed candidly.'My Story' became a cult classic in terms of Indian autobiographies, despite the fact that some elements of the book were later revealed to be fiction. Her unapologetic tone in the face of a traditionally conservative society created both adoration and scandal and turned it into a cult classic in terms of Indian autobiographies.

As she wrote in the preface of *My Story: “*Some people told me that writing an autobiography like this, with absolute honesty, keeping nothing to oneself, is like doing a striptease. True, maybe. I, will, firstly, strip myself of clothes and ornaments. Then I intend to peel off this light brown skin and shatter my bones. At last, I hope you will be able to see my homeless, orphan, intensely beautiful soul, deep within the bone, deep down under, beneath even the marrow, in a fourth dimension.” She showcased the different cultural backgrounds of the people and places she interacted with in her autobiography

This candour appears to have resulted in a kind of self-liberation; through her poetry, she was able to break free from the barriers erected by males, and she was able to criticise the type of womanhood expected of women – that of a quiet, meek, and obedient person.

Furthermore, born into a strict Hindu Nair family with royal ancestry, she converted to Islam in 1999 at the age of 65 after being persuaded by her lover Sadiq Ali, an Islamic scholar and Muslim League MP. She explained  “Islam is my company. Islam is the only religion in the world that gives love and protection to women. Therefore, I have converted.” when asked why. She announced her intention to marry her Muslim partner, but the marriage never took place, and she later stated that one should not alter one's religion.

She died on May 31, 2009, at the age of 75, in a hospital in Pune. Leaving behind a bundle of notions and stories for the world to interpret. A character who decided what chapter we read from her book of life.

‘My Story’ an autobiography by Kamala Surrayya