He was born in a family of traditional physicians to M. P. Krishnan Vaidyan and P. Kalyanikutty Amma, both practitioners of Ayurveda, and is a graduate of modern medicine (Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery) and Ayurvedic medicine (Department of Administration and Management), which he passed with first rank from the Ayurveda College, Thiruvananthapuram.
He is associated with many healthcare institutions in Kerala such as Amala Institute of Medical Sciences, Thrissur, Arya Vaidya Sala, Kottakkal, Ayurveda Pharmacy, Aluva and Ayurveda Samajam Hospitals, located at Thiruvananthapuram and Shornur, either as a consultant or as an advisor. Krishnan, who started his career at his family clinic and later worked at the Panchakarma Clinic in Cheruthuruthi, maintains his practice at his clinic in Kollam. He is an examiner of ayurvedic courses conducted by University of Kerala, Mahatma Gandhi University, University of Madras and Bharathiar University and works as the Dean of Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit.
He is a recipient of Bhrihatrayee Ratna (1977) and Vaidya Vachaspati awards and has received the Fellowship from the Government of India.
He is also a member of the Central Council of Indian Medicine and an advisor on Indian medicine to the Government of Kerala.
