E.M.S. Namboodiripad (1909-1998) was one of the key figures in Indian Communism. He was the first Communist state chief minister - of Kerala, 1957-9 and 1967-9. He later spent fourteen years - 1978-92 - as general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). He was regarded as orthodox in his Communism.
I interviewed him in Delhi on 16 March 1994 and we talked about how he became a Communist, the influence on Indian communism of Rajani Palme Dutt and the British party and the development of the Indian Communist movement. Mr Namboodiripad was hard of hearing and several of the questions were written down.