ALAPPUZHA: The doyen of Malayalam drama and a saintly figure with the name of Saitan, Saitan Joseph, passed away here at 2.30 p.m. on Monday.
He was 85.
He has been bedridden owing to age-related illness.
Saitan was the part and parcel of Malayalam drama in its heyday.
Alleppey Theatres, the drama company he founded, had staged as many as 50 dramas, which contained strong messages against the evils that plagued society.
However, his troupe is better known for the Bible-based dramas which were staged throughout the state. Its first drama was Thirty Silver Coins, which was staged throughout Kerala as well as other states. As a responsible artiste, he firmly believed that it was the duty of an artiste to use his talent for the betterment of society.
He was born on January 30, 1925, at Kanjiramchira in Alappuzha town as the son of Kallupurakkal Anthrayes and Lucy Anthrayes.
He was not only an artiste but also an industrialist. He was the secretary of the All- Kerala Small-scale Coir Manufacturers Association. He was a member of the Congress and had been Alappuzha municipal councillor for eleven years.
Kallupurakkal Thampi, the grandfather of Saitan Joseph, had established a school to teach chavittunatakam.
Joseph’s father Anthrayes was a student of the drama school and later became a great performer.
The saitan’s role he played in the Bible story won him accolades. The surname ‘Saitan’ was thus added to his name. Saitan Anthrayes’ son Joseph, also an artiste, was not spared by the public either.
They called him Saitan Joseph. Joseph gladly accepted the ‘pet name’ as an ancestral heritage.
Joseph had also written and published an autobiography Ente Natakanubhavangal (My experiences with drama), which is the history of the Malayalam drama itself.
Joseph had won many awards, including the state government’s Professional Drama Award, the Chavara Award and the Kerala Sangeeta Nataka Akademy Award.
His wife Mary had died on March 9, 1997. The couple had eight children and two of them died young.
Though he had eight children, all of them were daughters.
Saitan was sad that he didn’t have a son to carry the family heritage- the beautiful surname saitan- bestowed on him and his father by the public.
Joseph’s funeral will be held at St Francis Assisi Church at 4 p.m. on Tuesday.