Leela Devi

Leela Devi Biography

Leela Devi was a noted writer and translator belonging to Malayalam literature. She was equally popular as a teacher too. Apart from Malayalam, she has also authored books belonging to English and Sanskrit languages. She along with her husband, V. Balakrishnan – a noted author has authored and translated more than 300 books in total. The couple translated Naganandam by Harshavardhana, the only drama in Sanskrit about Buddhism. It is regarded as one among their best works and earned critics’ appreciation also. Contribution of Writers to Indian Freedom Movement is her noted English work. She has also translated many Malayalam works to English, which includes Chandu Menon’s Indulekha – first Malayalam novel.

She hailed from Pala of Kottayam district, Kerala. She was born on February 13, 1932. She got married to V. Balakrishnan. The couple started their literary career only after marriage. They started their literary career together. Balakrishnan even resigned his job as high school teacher to concentrate on to his writing career. The couple compiled the first Malayalam Encyclopedia in 1967. Since then they have authored more than 300 books till Leela passed away in 1998. Balakrishnan passed away on August 2, 2004. As per Wikipedia source, both the writers are born exactly on the same day - February 13, 1932.

Among the translation works – Naganandam, Marthandavarma, Narayaneeyam, and Vidur Gita (Mahabharata) are her major works. Apart from a few English books, she has also authored a few plays. She authored the English play, New Horizon, which is believed to be the first play on the subject of Panchayatiraj. She has also authored a few fictional and fantasy English novels such as Blue Jasmine and Saffron. Her works also include some non-fiction works.

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Updated: July 09, 2016