NM John, long time resident of Kolkata who served as professor of history at St Xavier’s College and Don Bosco and rose to become a cultural icon of the South there passed away at 96 on the Independence Day.

A leading activist in his student days, John was instrumental in introducing many stalwarts to campus politics in Kerala. He was an active member of Kolkata Malayali Samajam and was president of the Purogamana Kala  Sahitya Sangham for more than 30 years till death called him away. He was cremated at the public crematorium as per his wishes.

Born in Kottayam, he studied at Viswbahrathi where its founder Tagore was his mentor and writer Maheswata Devi his class mate. Had his Masters in ancient history and archeology from Allahabad University. Started as lecturer in SN College, Kollam where he met his life-partner Sarala Nair, who was teaching at the SN Women’s College. Both had to leave the college because of the alliance and support to campus agitation. Both were forced to leave their home and hearth and take refuge in West Bengal, to remain there for 52 years till date.

John had a stint as lecturer in Manipur College in Imphal before arriving in Kolkata to settle down. “Even in my Manipur days the police intelligence hunted me as a leftist. An Orthodox Christian marrying a Nair girl could not but be an antisocial or an anarchist was the police prejudice in a state as progressive as Kerala”, he once recalled.

John was close to Jyothi Basu, EMS Namboodiripad, AK. Gopalan, PK Vasudevan Nair, etc. Chief Minister EK Nayanar has visited him at his residence at Adhripukkar, in Beck Bagan, South Kolkata. While a student at UC College, Aluva, he was instrumental in attracting young turks like Malayalttor Ramakrishnan, P. Govinda Pillai, PK Vasudevan Nair, J. Chitharanjan, KC George and others to student politics. PG himself has acknowledged John’s role in his writings.

John was the captain of the anti-CP Ramaswamy Aiyer march to Ttrivandrum and was jailed for six months in the Punnpra-Vayalar stir. Both husband and wife were consummate artistes who staged many Malayalam plays in Kolkata and acted in them too.

John is survived by  his wife Sarala John, son Ajoy John former Design Editor of The Statesman and The Telegraph, now running his own editing firm Bee Ideas, Arun John, a novelist and professor of creative writing, Austin University, Texas and Dr. Anitha John, a scientist at Avaya Communications, New Jersey.
I met the Johns on a recent visit to Kolkata and the North East in the company of Vaikom Madhu, my friend and colleague at Malayala Manorama. We were both Assistant Editors at Kottayam. In the charming redbrick house of John and Sarala in South Kolkata, their eldest son Ajoy and his charming wife Sabarni joined us for chat over a hot cup of tea and Bengali sweets. Ajoy and his siblings miss Kerala because they were all born and brought up in Kolkata. They missed the love and affection of a Malayali grandpa or a grandma whose tender care and affection is known all over the world as something unique.

Sabarni Das, Ajoy’s wife, was Associate Editor in Sananda, the premier Bengali magazine for women. She tossed up her job in 2008 and turned to films and television in 2009. She has worked as Costume Designer for 12 films (directors Aparna Sen, Srijit Mukherjee, Kamaleswar Mukherjee); won the National Film Award for Costume Design for Jaatiswar  in 2014; won the Uttam Kumar Memorial Award in 2014.

Kanduri Charan Das, father of Sabarni, settled in Calcutta in the early 40s; was an editor of several Oriya literary magazines; was the most popular Oriya writer in the whodunit genre; he wrote more than 70 novels and numerous short stories; won the Orissa State Sahitya Akademi Award in 2001. He died in 26 May 2014. 
Kalpana Das (nee Kalpana Kumari Devi), mother of Sabarni, writes Oriya novels and has won the national Sahitya Akademi Award in 2012

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Kolkata Malayalee Samajam placed a wreath on John’s body.  They have called for a meeting to condole his death on 24th evening.