Wat Wanlayangkoon: A Life Given to Art and Justice

In March 2022, award winning Thai novelist, Wat Wanlayangkoon passed away in France, aged 67. He spent the last 8 years of his life in exile from his homeland. Wanlayangkoon was a well-respected activist and pro-democracy advocate whose activism can be traced to the 1970s student activism that was brutally put down by the military on 6 October 1976. Following the massacre at Thammasat University, in which, officially, 46 were killed (41 civilians- students and demonstrators; 2 state officers and 3 para-military), Wanlayangkoon fled to join the Communist Party of Thailand in the jungle, where he lived for 5 years before returning to Bangkok and continuing his literary career.

His novels, short stories and non-fiction works were imbued with issues of social justice and democratic ideas. One of his best loved novels, Mon Rak Transistor, tells the story of a young man with dreams of becoming a singer, who falls victim to the inequalities and exploitation in Thai society.  The novel was adapted by Pen-ek Ratanaruang into the film Transistor Love Story in 2001, to critical and popular acclaim.

Following the ousting of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in the 2006 coup, Wanlayangkoon joined the populist Red Shirt movement. In 2013, he was the MC at the staging of the play Wolf Bride, which was charged by the authorities of lèse-majesté.¹ In 2014, a warrant for his arrest was issued. Wanlayangkoon chose to go into exile, first in Laos, and eventually, to France, which granted him political asylum.

In this video, researcher Sudarat Musikawong and filmmaker Nutcha Tantivit explore Wanlayangkoon’s life and the impact of his work in Thailand.  In addition to featuring interview footage of Wat Wanlayangkoon, they interviewed his son, the artist Wana Wanlayangkoon, Ida Aroonwong (Wanlayangkoon’s memoir publishers Aan Publications), Rachel Harrison (SOAS, University of London), and members of the arts community in Thailand.

The video can be seen here or on Youtube.