Khadija Mumtaz


Khadeeja Mumthas is a Malayalam author from Kerala state, India. She is a medical doctor by profession and is probably best known in the Kerala literary circles for her second novel Barsa which won the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award in 2010.

Early and personal life

Born in Kattoor in Thrissur district, Khadeeja Mumthas completed her Pre-degree course from St. Joseph's College, Irinjalakuda and received her MBBS degree from Calicut Medical College. She mastered in gynaecology and is a registered medical practitioner and has been working in Calicut Medical College as Professor in gynaecology and obstetrics. She applied for voluntary retirement from government service in June 2013 to protest against her transfer from Calicut Medical College at the fag end of her service. She is presently the Vice Chairman of Kerala Sahithya Akademy and is also selected as one of the Academic council member, Thunchathezhuthachan Malayalam university, Tirur, Kerala. She is also a visiting professor in O&G, Malabar Medical College, Modakkallur, Kozhikode.

Literary career

Mumtaz started her literary career with Athmatheerthangalil Munginivarnnu, which was first published as a serial novel in Chandrika weekly and later as a book by Current Books in 2004. Mumtaz rose to fame with her novel Barsa, which was a great critical and popular success. The book, which won critical acclaim for its forceful but humorous presentation of the restrictions under which Muslim women are forced to live, was hailed a milestone in Malayalam literature. It won the prestigious Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for the year 2010. Mumtaz's next novel, Athuram, released on 28 January 2011 at the 12th International Book Festival in Kochi, also received rave reviews from critics. According to renowned writer U. A. Khader, this novel, after her acclaimed Barsa, was sure to trigger off a diverse kind of reading and interpretations as it passionately dealt with a sphere closer to Dr. Mumthas by her own experience as a medical practitioner. "The unique style of narration that develops through the inner conflicts of characters is sure to compel the readers' attention throughout the work," he said.
In 2012, she published a collection of essays on gynaecology titled Mathrukam. She has also published a collection of her memoirs as a doctor under the title Doctor Daivamalla. She is also a notable columnist writing articles in various magazines.

Awards