Perunchithiranar

Perunchithiranar Biography

Perunchithiranar was a Tamil poet & scholar and Tamil nationalist best known for his involvement in Pure Tamil Movement. He is also known as the father of Tamil Nation. He lived during the period, 10 March 1933 – 11 June 1995. He was a rationalist, which was reflected in his writings. For his stand, he has remained in controversies many times. In fact he was imprisoned twice after the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, for his open support to Tamil Eelam, a proposed independent state that Tamils in Sri Lanka and the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora.

His birth name is Rajamanickam. He was born on 10 March 1933 in Samuthiram near Salem. Duraisamiyar and Kunchammal were his parents. He was married to Kamalam. He completed his early education from Salem and Attur. After his graduation in Tamil, he started his professional career as a Tamil professor. But he is best remembered for his association with Thani Tamil Iyakkam, Independent Tamil Movement, which aimed at rescuing Tamil language from the grip of Sanskrit and to create an identity of its own. This linguistic-purity movement in Tamil literature received huge support from writers, journalists etc.

After his brief career as a professor, he worked in postal department. He began his journalist journey by starting Thenmozhi magazine. Later he started Tamilsittu and Tamil Nilam, two more magazines and remained editor as well. He also published more than 10 books during his lifetime. His books such as Koyyakani and Ayyai have been included in college syllabus. The writer has invited controversies for his statements and writings several times. His anti-Hindi remarks for his magazine earned him jail once.

Published: September 15, 2018

Updated: September 15, 2018