IT is sweet to be simple, but being simple is indeed difficult. And it is even more difficult to understand the minds of those who are simple.
Hence, it is no easy task to peek into the mind of the man who wrote an ode to his land as Maamalakalkappurathu marataka pattuduthu — a song that retains the same freshness as the deeply romantic Alliyambal kadavil.
Both songs enchant not only through their lyrical beauty but also through a fulfilling simplicity that made them songs the common folk would hum as they went about their routines.
Years have passed since they were written, and yet they continue to radiate that same simplicity, remaining as enchanting as ever.
The songs, in many ways, reflected the writer’s — Pullattupadathu Bhaskaran, better known as P Bhaskaran — qualities, which his followers and those close to him fondly remember as his centenary celebrations come to a close on April 21.
His words were simple, yet they emanated from deep and ruminative thought. They also bore a natural empathy that underscored his connection to the masses. There were themes of romance, rebellion and revolution.
“Probably, that has to do with his life experiences. He jumped into the freedom movement when just 18 and even served a jail term,” notes former C-DIT deputy director Mohan Kumar K, who has edited a compilation of writings on Bhaskaran that will be released on April 21 in Kochi.
“As part of the communist movement, he worked at the grassroots, where he came into close touch with common people and their issues. All these shaped the poet in him, who had started writing poetry by age 18. His taste was immensely Keralite, as could be seen from the references to flora in his poetry — manjanipoo, alliyambal, etc. He was probably the first to envisage Kerala as one entity and had even written an anthem for a united Kerala.”
Revolutionary zeal
Some see a Tagorean influence in Bhaskaran’s poetry — in his devotion to nature, pristine human emotions, the ways of the world, and the surreal hope that transcends material divisiveness. However, veteran lyricist and filmmaker Sreekumaran Thampi begs to differ.
“All three popular poets of the times — P Bhaskaran,
O N V Kurup and Vayalar Rama Varma — followed the Changampuzha style. And later, as they moved on, they found their own distinct space. Still, of the three, it was Bhaskaran maash who found his voice earlier, and that too in a way that was highly empathetic,” he says.
As a communist, too, Bhaskaran had deep roots, although in the popular imagination Vayalar and ONV were seen as more prominent revolutionary poets.
“His landmark work that served as an impetus to the communist movement in Kerala, Vayalar Gargikunnu, was written when he was just 22. In fact, he became a member of the communist party at 18. He brought the spirit of revolution into his writings akin to the zeal of French revolutionary-era writers,” says Thampi, who considers Bhaskaran his guru and credits him with mentoring his early career.
“His rebelliousness was natural and rooted in humanity — something that is rare now. The passion in his poems stood out, whether they were revolutionary or deeply romantic, as in Orkuka vallappozhum, for which he won the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1982.”
Thampi adds that Bhaskaran’s revolutionary ideals gradually transformed into spiritual reflection towards his later years, but he remained a communist at heart — “he believed that to feel for the downtrodden, one need not be a card-carrying party member”.
“In fact, there was a fiery revolution in Osyathu, which he wrote in the 1980s after leaving cinema for literature. It was about how he wanted his veins to be kneaded as coir and used to build homes for the downtrodden,” he recalls.
Tiff with EMS
Bhaskaran’s disenchantment with the communist party began during his involvement with the Purogamana Sahitya Sangham. At the peak of his popularity in both films and poetry, E M S Namboodiripad asked him to stop writing love poems and to focus instead on revolutionary themes alone.
“Bhaskaran maash was not one to yield. He responded by citing how Mao Tse-tung used to write love poetry,” Thampi smiles.
“Differences between him and the party grew from there. He did not renew his membership, and his ties with the party weakened. In fact, it wasn’t the Left government but another dispensation that made him chairman of KSFDC in the 1980s. Yet, he remained a communist at heart till the end.”
Bhaskaran looked at hearts — a born poet, mentored by the likes of Mahakavi Vallathol. He was a genuine man whose life trajectory followed a natural, unpretentious path.
“He had no insecurities. Why else would he work with me in nine of his films where I wrote the screenplay? We wrote songs together. And not just me — even in his first independent directorial film Raarichan Enna Pouran, he cast newcomers. His empathy was what stood out,” Thampi recalls.
Despite being a legendary poet, theatre personality, film producer, and journalist and also having charted a distinct path for Malayalam cinema through the National Award-winning Neelakkuyil (1954), which he co-directed with Ramu Karyat and won the National Award, Bhaskaran has been quite overlooked when it comes to recognition, believe his fans and researchers.
“His poems have not been studied deeply. His revolution wasn’t tokenism — it changed the face of Malayalam cinema in content and style. He was instrumental in the growth of several legends who began as talents nurtured by him,” notes Mohan.
“His term at Kozhikode Akashvani, where he collaborated with the likes of M S Baburaj, K Raghavan, and others to produce fabulous poetry and songs, could be called a golden period of Malayalam literature. He also brought local, folk tunes from the community level to the public domain. Take, for instance, the song Kayalarikathu valayerinjappol — the hallmark of this song is that it made Mappilapaattu a popular genre.”
For all these reasons and more, Thampi and poet K Satchidanandan have stressed that Bhaskaran was the first among Keralites eligible for the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for lifetime achievement.
‘Bhaskara mudra’
For fans, however, official recognition doesn’t matter. “The multi-faceted genius of Bhaskaran maash poetry is well-established through the seamless transition of his songs from the backstages of communist dramas to the simple yet intimately appealing film songs that followed,” says music exponent and author P Kirathadas.
“His songs were devoid of poetic or ideological jargon. While his contemporary Vayalar Rama Varma sometimes digressed into philosophy and idealism, Bhaskaran maash always carried nature’s intrinsic melodies in his work. As Gireesh Puthenchery once said, there was always a ‘Bhaskara mudra’ in his songs.”
The pleasantness in his rhymes was palpable, reflecting an inherent celebratory mode of life — in all its pathos, romance, and ecstasy. “He wrote for Malayalis who saw their own lives on the screen,” he says. “He had a magic pen to cast a spell.”
Bhaskaran’s versatility enabled him to work with all four prominent music directors of that golden era — Devarajan Master, Baburaj, K Raghavan, and V Dakshinamurthy, Kirathadas notes.
“To me, the best combination was Bhaskaran, Baburaj, and S Janaki. Remember
Thaliritta kinakkal? Then, of course, the lovely Oru pushpam maathramen sung by K J Yesudas in the mesmerising Desh raag,” he says. “And among his films, Iruttinte Athmavu was exceptional. It has glimpses of perfect film-making.”
Entrepreneur and singer Sajith Pallipuram, another P Bhaskaran devotee, says he “will do anything for PB” as he takes a break from a business meeting for speaking to TNIE.
Sajith recalls what his grandmother once told him: ‘As you grow, it will be P Bhaskaran’s songs that will stay with you. They will inspire you, haunt you, endear themselves to you like nothing else. His songs will speak to you as I am speaking now — or as your own child might one day — and they will either bring a smile to your lips or a tear to your eye.’
“Her words, I realise now, were profoundly true,” he says. “P Bhaskaran didn’t write songs; he wrote life itself — in a way only a true poet can,” he says.
Time was another of Bhaskaran master’s favourite themes, subtly explored in Orkuka vallapozhum, where he implores his lover to remember him occasionally, as time effaces all memories. Kirathadas and Sajith believe one cannot hope to see another P Bhaskaran in the future. All that music and poetry lovers can do is to remember that once, such a soul treaded the literary world.