N. N. Pillai was born in 1918 at Vaikom, Kottayam district to Ullilakkiru Parambil Narayana Pillai and Vaikom Thekkathil Parukkutty Amma [REF].
His family includes his wife Chinnamma, sister Omana, two daughters Sulochana and Renuka and son Vijayaraghavan who is a popular Malayalam film actor.