Veteran scribe TJS George dies at 97

Bengaluru: TJS George — writer, biographer, and journalist — passed away at a city hospital on Friday after a brief illness. He was 97.

In his 70-year career, Thayil Jacob Sony George — more popular as TJS — wrote several books on global affairs, including Lee Kuan Yew and Singapore, the rise of Islam in Philippine politics, and on politics closer home, too — portraits on modern political discourse and leaders active in the last 35-40 years. Besides, he closely tracked the geopolitics of China and Southeast Asian countries.

His weekly column on current affairs in an English-language publication ran for nearly 25 years. The tone was gentle, yet firm, and writing simple, yet exacting.

His biographies of actor Nargis, Carnatic legend MS Subbulakshmi, and writer-journalist Pothan Joseph are considered finely-balanced accounts of these icons.

TJS is survived by his poet-novelist son, Jeet Thayil, and daughter, Sheba Thayil.