Satchidanandan's literary career began with the publication of 'Kurukshetram', a collection of essays on poetry (1970) and 'Anchusooryan', a collection of poems(1971). Since then he has published several books of poetry, criticism, plays, travelogues and translations of poetry and plays and edited several magazines like 'Jwala', 'Uttaram' and 'Pachakkutira' besides many anthologies of poetry and essays in Malayalam, English, Hindi and Slovenian. He has represented India at several national and international literary events like Valmiki World Poetry Festival (Delhi,1985), Sarajevo Poetry Days (1985), Festival of India in the USSR (1988), Printemps des Poetes, France(2003), Berlin Literary Festival (2005), Frankfurt Book fair (2005, 2006), Paris Book fair (2007), Jaipur International Literary Festival (2008, 9, 10, 11,12), London Book fair (2009), Indo-Arab Literary Festival, Abu Dhabi (2008), Blue Metropolis Literary Festival, Montreal (20110, Hay Festival, Trivandrum, 2011) Rotterdam Poetry Festival (2012), Medellin Poetry Festival (2013), Festival of India in Latin America (2013), Sharjah Book fair (2013) and Vilenica Literary Festival, Slovenia (2014, 2015). This is besides readings in Lahore, Manchester, Dubai, Damascus, Aleppo, Bonn, Rome, Madrid, Avila, Segovia and all major cities in India. One of the most widely anthologised and translated of modern poets in India, he has 32 books of poems in 18 languages. He was given the Indo-Polish Friendship Medal by the Government of Poland in 2005 and the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic in 2006. He was in the Ladbroke list of Nobel probables in 2011. A film on him, 'Summer Rain' was released in 2007.