Nizhal, an untold story !

‘Nizhal’ written by T. Damodaran was staged by desaposhini on may 15th, 1967. Today, desaposhini does not have any details about this drama. Even the script is lost. But there is an interesting story behind ‘Nizhal’ which not many know.
During 50s, there was a literary circle in Kozhikode comprising the likes of M.T Vasudevan Nair, Thikkodiyan, Kunjhandy, T damodaran and N. P. Mohan who gathered in the evenings at the then famous wheat house and Modern bakery. They got together at either of these places and often discussed big topics. The owners of both wheat house and the modern bakery were good friends. But owing to bad experiences with each other, one killed another. This came as a shock to the literary giants. Gradually, both wheat house and the bakery closed down. A meeting place was thus lost. The owner who committed the murder was sent to the Madras central jail. A few days before his hanging, he expressed a desire to meet M.T and Damodaran. To fulfill their friend’s final wish M.T and Damodaran went to the jail to meet him the last time. It is believed that both M.T and Damodaran were moved by their friend’s last words for them. Coming back to Kerala, Damodaran was disturbed by this – it was the birth of ‘Nizhal’. It is known that M.T who was also mentally tortured by the meeting wrote a short story based on this experience.