Book Review: The Second Marriage of Kunju Namboodiri & Other Classic Malayalam Stories

Book Review: The Second Marriage of Kunju Namboodiri & Other Classic Malayalam Stories

Edited by Mini Krishnan | Translated by Venugopal Menon

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harper Perennial (18 March 2025)

I must begin with a confession: the vast majority of fiction I’ve read over the years has been penned by native English speakers. This long-standing habit has, somewhat inevitably, made me rather exacting when it comes to Indian authors writing in English—only the very best truly stand out. However, reading translated works from Indian languages is an altogether different experience. They remind me, time and again, of the immense literary talent that lies scattered across India, often inaccessible to large swathes of the population simply because these writers express themselves in languages unfamiliar to most Indians.

Malayalam is my mother tongue, and though I speak it with reasonable fluency, my reading skills scarcely extend beyond billboards or headlines. Having never lived in Kerala, I’ve missed the chance to internalize the finer nuances of literary Malayalam. Thankfully, Venugopal Menon’s translation of these classic Malayalam short stories (written between 1891 and 1924) captures the spirit and cadence of that bygone era so deftly that I felt transported—immersed in a time when the Indian freedom struggle was still finding its feet.

What stands out most in this collection is the strength of the storytelling. Every narrative has a well-formed plot, and while readers of the original Malayalam versions may have additionally delighted in the richness of the language, it’s clear that the primary goal of these authors was to tell a compelling story—and that they most certainly do. I won’t spoil any of the plots here; discovering them is part of the joy. I urge readers to experience the collection firsthand.

Equally remarkable is the vivid glimpse these stories offer into life a century ago. In one tale, a pickpocket caught by the police is sentenced to twelve lashes and six months in jail. Imagine—a time when, under British rule in the Madras Presidency, corporal punishment was not only legal but formally executed by the police! Legal dramas pepper the collection too—carbon copies, forged handwriting, upright and corrupt lawyers alike, bribe-taking policemen—painting a nuanced picture of the colonial-era judicial set up. Yet, at the heart of most stories lies the deeply human terrain of love, arranged marriages, and family ties. And here, strikingly, we see how little human nature has changed. Many of these plots could unfold in our own time.

Another admirable thread running through these stories is their reformist spirit. Many of the authors use their narratives to champion women’s rights. One tale rails against child marriage, another satirizes ritualistic excesses, while yet another cleverly flips gender roles—casting a wife as wiser and sharper than her self-important husband. The titular story, The Second Marriage of Kunju Namboodiri, offers a rare window into the customs of the Namboodiris of Kerala, especially their relationships with Nair women and the often-stifling lives of Namboodiri women confined within the illam.

Tipu Sultan’s invasion of Malabar provides the historical backdrop for a pair of stories written by C. Kunhirama Menon (M.R.K.C).

At the end of the book, there are brief notes on each author and the note on M.R.K.C tells us that M.R.K.C. drew inspiration from historical settings but populated them with fictional characters, showing little concern for strict historical accuracy.  M.R.K.C lived from 1882 to 1939 and Tipu’s invasions of Malabar primarily occurred between 1789 and 1792, during the Third Anglo-Mysore War. Tipu had earlier accompanied his father, Hyder Ali, in a 1766 invasion of Malabar. 

The stories themselves are wonderfully digestible. Most span around ten pages, with the shortest being a mere three and the longest, twenty. Though all stories have been translated by Venugopal Menon, the tone and texture of the prose vary from story to story—reflecting the diversity of the original authors' voices.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this evocative collection of Malayalam classics. It is both a literary and cultural time capsule, and Venugopal Menon’s translation makes these stories accessible and enjoyable to readers unfamiliar with the original language. I highly recommend this anthology—it’s available on Amazon, and it’s well worth your time.