Who was Balamani Amma?

Balami Amma was a famous Indian poet, who is popularly known as the grandmother of Malayalam literature. Although Amma received no formal education, she was a recipient of many awards and honours for her literary work, including Saraswati Samman and Padma Vibhushan, India’s second-highest civilian award. Balamani Amma is the mother of Kamala Das, who was nominated for the Nobel Prize in literature in 1984.

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Balamani Amma: Background and Family 

• Balamani Amma was born on 19 July 1909, at Nalappat, her ancestral home in Punnayurkulam, Ponnani taluk, Malabar District, British India. She was born to Chittanjoor Kunhunni Raja (father) and Nalapat Kochukutti Amma (mother). 
• Balamani Amma did not receive any formal education but was greatly influenced by her maternal uncle, who had a great collection of books. 
• She started writing under the tutelage of her maternal uncle and eventually became a poet. 
• She was greatly inspired by two famous poets Nalapat Narayana Menon and Vallathol Narayana Menon.
• Amma married V.M. Nair at the age of 19, who was a managing editor and managing director of the widely read Malayalam newspaper Mathrubhumi. Later, Nair worked as an executive for an automobile manufacturer.
• Balamani Amma was Kamala Surayya’s mother. Kamala Surayya, also known as Kamala Das, translated one of Amma’s poems, “The Pen,” which explores a mother’s sense of isolation. Ente Katha (My Story), Das’ autobiography, is one of the most well-known and admired pieces of 20th-century Indian literature.
• She was the mother of two more children, son Shyam Sunder and daughter Sulochana.
• Amma passed away on September 29, 2004, five years after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. She was cremated with full state honours present.
• She continues to be known as the ‘amma’ (mother) and ‘muthassi’ (grandmother), of Malayalam poetry.

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Literary Work

Amma became a great poet and influenced many people with her work. As an avid reader of Indian mythology, in her poetry, Amma frequently challenged the conventional perceptions about women’s roles. Her writings integrated the concepts and narratives of mythological figures while yet portraying women as strong individuals who nevertheless lived regular lives.

• She earned the title “poetess of motherhood” because of her early poems that depicted motherhood through a new lens.
• In addition to several written works and translations, Balamani Amma authored over 20 anthologies of poetry. 
• In 1930 her first poem, “Kooppukai” was published, at the age of 21.  
• The poems written by Balamani Amma between 1959 and 1986 are collected in Nivedyam. 
• Muthassi and Nivedyam are her award-winning pieces of work.
• Other famous works include an elegy written in honour of the poet Nalapat Narayana Menon, Lokantharangalil.
• Her other well-known works were Amma, Mazhuvinte Katha (The Story of the Axe), and Sandhya.
• She was given her first honour when Parikshith Thampuran, the previous king of the Kingdom of Cochin, presented her with the Sahithya Nipuna Puraskaram. 

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Awards and Recognition

• Balamani Amma is the receiver of many awards and accolades. She received the third-highest civilian honour in India, the Padma Bhushan, in 1987. 
• She received the honorary titles Amma (mother) and Muthassi (grandmother) for her poems in the Malayalam language.
• She was given Sahitya Akademi Award for ‘Muthassi’ in 1965 and the Saraswati Samman for ‘Nivedyam; in 1995.
• Many other literary honours include Asan Prize (1989), Vallathol Award (1993), Lalithambika Antharjanam Award (1993), Ezhuthachan Award (1995) and Kendra Sahitya Akademi (1997). 

Later generations of Malayalam poets, including Akkitham Achuthan Namboothiri, have drawn inspiration from Amma. In her honour, the Balamani Amma Award is given at the Kochi International Book Fair to writers.

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