KOCHI: Azhikode’s was a voice so fragile and trembling, yet so intrinsically powerful that it effortlessly sliced through the socio-cultural and political fabric of the Malayali psyche.His death is a colossal loss for the language, as no letter in the Malayalam alphabet would have escaped his acidic wield that constantly torpedoed human thought. Armed with a panoramic philosophical insight and a never-say-die spirit, he read and re-read, spoke and was spoken about. In the course of his search for the ultimate ‘Tatvamasi’, he never ceased to annoy souls in his way.Here was a man whom it was virtually impossible to label. An orator? Social critic? Writer-turned-philosopher? Or a maverick with unending passion for anything and everything that’s filled with life, be it poetry, philosophy, cinema or cricket? He has left his indelible mark everywhere - a khadi-clad lean figure, a man with the name Sukumar Azhikode. Loved and hated at the same time, he had his one foot in controversies. Be it the row with Chullikkad or the sudden outburst against Mohanlal, controversies were waiting to be made. Though he never attempted to be a popular figure, he remained one. Never was he a rabble-rouser. Thoroughly enjoyable were his words, written and spoken. An orator of the populist genre, it was a spectacle indeed to watch listeners hanging onto his words. Portraying mystic figures and comic characters through deft strokes of words, with swift movements of fingers in air, a question was made, a reason proposed and an opinion asserted. Right from the first one ‘Asante Seethakavyam’ to the last. The much-debated ‘Tatvamasi’ and the much-criticised ‘G Sankara Kurup Vimarsikkappedunnu’ were the two widely read.Little do readers know about a curious item ‘Azhikodinte Phalithangal,’ a collection of jokes narrated by the critic. However, it’s too soon to ascertain how the coming generations will assess him as a critic or orator. “There were controversies which created some recent popularity. But, the substantial contributions made by him will ever be remembered by the future generations,” said writer M V Benny. Breathing his last at Amala Hospital, Azhikode leaves behind a history adorned with flowers and hidden thorns.
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