Subramaniya Siva was an Indian freedom fighter. He was a revolutionary and had to spend many years in prison. He was also a versatile writer and has written many books. He was born on 4th October 1884 in Vathlagundu town of Dindigul district of the then Madras Presidency. His father was Rajam Iyer and he was his eldest son.

He followed the traits of Bala Ganghadhara Tilak. V. O. Chidambaram and Subramanya Bharathi are his contemporaries. He disagreed with Gandhiji and his non-violence attitude. He believed that only violence could counteract violence and so he adapted revolutionary methods of showing protest.

He was married and was survived by his son Sabhapathi Sharma. He was arrested in 1908 and 1922 for his anti-political activities. He wrote a book named Jail Life which gives an account of his life in prison. He was the author of the journal Gnana Bhanu which contains the collection of poetry.

He was a devotee of Swami Vivekananda and Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. He wrote the books Ramanuja Vijayam and Madhya Vijayam. He wanted to create enlightenment among people through his dramas and bhajans.

He chose Papparapatti village in Pennagaram taluk for his activities. In 1921 he came to Papparapatti and tried to establish Bharatashram there which was not successful. He was suffering from leprosy when he was in prison. In those days leprosy was considered to be a contagious disease and many restrictions were imposed on him by the British Government. He was not allowed to travel in trains. In spite of these difficulties he walked on foot to many places and continued his struggle for Indian independence.In 1908, he was arrested by the British and was the first political prisoner in Madras jail. While serving a prison term, he was afflicted by leprosy and was shifted to Salem jail. Since leprosy was regarded as a contagious disease, the British authorities forbade him to travel by rail after his release and hence he was forced to travel on foot. He continued to fight for independence and was incarcerated many times until 1922. He was the author of the journal Jnanabhanu and books Ramanuja Vijayam and Madhva Vijayam.

He was the first political prisoner in the Madras jail. He died on 23rd July 1925 and his Samadhi is situated in Papparapatti. Dindugul district collector office and Vathlagundu Bus Stand were named after him. In 2010 it was announced by the Government of Tamil Nadu that a memorial would be established for him in Papparapatti

Dheeran Chinnamalai was an Indian revolutionary and chief of Kongu Nadu who revolted against the supremacy of British rule in India. He was a Palayakkarar in Tamil Nadu who fought against the British East India Company in the 18th century B. C.

He was born on 17th April 1756 in Melapalayam near Erode in Tamil Nadu. His birth name was Theerthagiri Sarkkarai Mandraadiyaar. He belonged to the famous Palaiya Kottai Pattakarar family. His parents are Rathnaswamy and Periyaatha. He had four brothers, Kudandiswamy, Thambi, Kilothar and Kuttiswamy and one sister Parvatham.

He got good training of Silambu and archery. He headed a huge army that fought in the Second Polygar War in 1801 to 1802. In late 1700s he Kongu Nadu was controlled by Mysore King Hyder Ali. When the diwan of Hyder Ali came to collect taxes from the farmers, he with his brothers seized the entire tax collected and distributed them back to the farmers. This incident took place between Sivan Malai and Chennimalai. He refused to accept the supremacy of Hyder Ali.

After the death of Hyder Ali on 12th July 1782, his son Tipu Sultan became the king of Mysore. He helped Tipu Sultan to gain victory in the battles at Chitheswaram, Mazahavalli and Srirangapatna by providing a big army of soldiers. More than 1000 Kongu Tamils joined the regiment of Tipu. After the death of Tipu he settled at Odanilai and fought with British at Cauvery, Odanilai and Arachalur.

As Dheeran Chinnamalai was running his own kingdom and did not respect the rules and regulations of the British East India Company they were annoyed. So they sent Colonel Makistan and his men to arrest him. Chinnamalai fought against him and won the battle. Again Captain Harris was sent to capture him. By his intelligence Chinnamalai was able to win this time also.

Velappan in the British army acted as an informer to Dheeran Chinnamalai. Later he was shot dead. After that the British arrested him and his brothers and kept them in the prison at Sankagiri. When they were asked to accept the rule of British they refused and so they were hanged by rope at the top of the Sankagiri fort on 31st July 1805

Puli Thevar was a poligar (or palayakarar) who ruled Nerkattumseval situated in the Sankarankoil taluk of Tamil Nadu. Puli Thevar who belongs to the warrior Maravar community was one of the earliest freedom fighters. He is one of the first Indian kings to have fought and defeated the British in India.Puli Thevar was born on September 1, 1715 in Puli Nadu, a part of Pandya Nadu to Chitraputra Thevan and Sivagnanam Nachiyar. Venni Kaladi was the general of Puli Thevar’s army

He is one of the earliest opponents of the British rule in South India. He was involved in a vendetta with the Nawab of Arcot who was supported by the British. Thevar’s prominent exploits were his confrontations with Marudhanayagam, who later rebelled against the British in the late 1750s and early 1760s.

Nelkatumseval was the headquarters of Puli Thevar, the first chieftain in India to resist the British.The author of the Thirunelveli District Gazetteer, H.R. Pate, observes as follows:

Nelkatumseval is chiefly memorable as having been in the eighteenth Century stronghold of the redoubtable Puli Thevar, who figured for many years as the leader of the Marava Confederacy against the troops of the Nawab and the Company. He had a shrewd insight into the political situation of the time and was a veritable thorn against the side of the Nawab’s agents.

Pulithevar remains one of the illustrious figures in the chequered history of palayakarars. The vivacity of his character gave him an ascendancy over the western palayakarars, while his determined resistance to the Nawab’s overlordship made him a potential enemy of the Wallajahs. He was the principal architect of the coalition of the palayakkars organised against the Nawab. The Nawab acknowledged his victory by presenting him with a gold plate and sword.

Pulithevar is regarded as the first ruler in Indian history, who sowed the seed, by his gallant resistance, to expel foreigners from his native land. His services to the nation are honoured; the government of Tamil Nadu has erected a memorial for him in Nelkatumseval where there are the remnants of his palace.

What happened after is nothing less that divine intervention. Puli Thevar started singing hymns in praise of Mahadeva and all of sudden the sound of the cracking of handcuffs were heard by the soldiers camping outside the temple. Disturbed by the sounds the soldiers rushed inside the temple to see what happened, only to see broken handcuffs and chains with Puli Thevar nowhere in sight and never to be seen again by any mortal. Some say he was taken by the Lord himself to his abode……

Not being a man who would give up or prostrate in front of the British their Muslim lackeys, Puli Thevar was thoroughly maligned by the British historians as a man who never kept his word and was deceitful to the core. While these events occurred in late 1760, the truth of the events was never fully told by the Marxist historians of secular India. Therefore I shall try and tell the tale of the heroic exploits of this man who very few Hindus outside of Southern India have ever heard about

The Maruthu Pandiyar brothers (Periya Maruthu & Chinna Maruthu) ruled Sivagangai, Tamil Nadu during the last part of the 18th century and they were the first to issue a proclamation of independence from the British rule from Trichy Thiruvarangam Temple, Tamil Nadu on June 10, 1801, which is 56 years before the North Indian rebellion – Sepoy mutiny of 1857.

In the year 1772, the English military of the East India Company, under the command of Lt.Col. Bon Jour attacked the state at Kalayar Kovil. As the war worsened, Raja Muthu Vaduganadhar lost his life on the spot. But the Maruthu brothers managed to escape along with Rani Velu Nachiar, wife of Raja Muthu Vadughanadhar and arrived at Dindigul which was ruled by Hyder Ali – the Sultan of Mysore as refugees. Hyder Ali supported them with all respects.

Arcot Nawab, the alliance partner of East India Company was not able to collect any taxes from the people of Sivaganga state for eight years, arranged for an agreement whereby the rule of Sivaganga was restored to Rani Velu Nachiar after he collected his dues from her. The Marudu brothers with 12,000 armed men surrounded Sivaganga and plundered Arcot Nawab’s territories. The Nawab on the 10th of March 1789 appealed to the Madras Council for aid. On 29th April 1789, the British forces attacked Kollangudi. It was defeated by a large body of Marudu’s troops.

They were in close association with Veera Pandiya Kattabomman of Panchalankurichi. Kattabomman held frequent consultations with Marudhus. After the execution of Kattabomman in 17th October 1799 at Kayattar, Chinna Marudhu gave asylum to Kattabomman’s brother Oomadurai (dumb brother). But, the British took this reason to invade and attacked Sivaganga in 1801 with a powerful army. The Maruthu Pandiyars and their allies were quite successful and captured three districts from the British. British considered it as a serious threat to their future in India that they rushed additional troops from Britain to put down Maruthu Pandiyars’ rebellion. These forces surrounded Maruthu Pandiyars’ army at Kalayar Koil, and the latter scattered. The Maruthu Brothers and their top commanders escaped. They regrouped and fought the British and their allies at Viruppatchi, Dindigul and Cholapuram. While they won the battle at Viruppatchi, they lost the other two battles.

The Marudhu Pandiyars, was the first king man who planned to war against British empire for India’s independence. They gave the protection to Velunachiyar from the British empire. They along with the war leader Sivagangai and many of their family members, were captured at Cholapuram and were killed at Thirupatur. They were hanged in the fort of Tirupputhur, which is now Sivaganga district, Tamil Nadu, on 24 October 1801.The kallarai of maruthu padiyar is located at Sivagangai.

Maruthu Brothers are good in aerodynamics and invented many variants of spears and Valari. They also founded guerilla war tactic in India during the early stages of colonisation. A commemorative postage stamp was released in October 2004. Every year people conduct Maruthu Pandiar Guru Puja at the Kalayakoil temple in October

For better understanding I recommend you to read the part-1

The Commission of Enquiry that went into the incident fixed the blame on Jackson and relieved him of his post, thinking the Company’s plan to take over the entire country gradually could be marred by Jackson’s fight with Veerapandiya Kattabomman.

The new Collector of Tirunelveli wrote to Kattabomman calling him for a meeting on 16 March, 1799. Kattabomman wrote back citing the extreme drought conditions for the delay in the payment of dues and also demanded that all that was robbed off him at Ramanathapuram be restored to him. The Collector wanted the ruling house of Sethupathis to prevent Kattabomman from aligning himself with the enemies of the Company and decided to attack Kattabomman.

The British also instigated his long time feuding neighbor Ettayapuram Poligar to make provocative wars over Kattabomman on their long pending territorial disputes.

Kattabomman refused to meet the Collector and a fight broke out. Under Major Bannerman, the army stood at all the four entrances of Panchalankurichi’s fort. At the southern end, Lieutenant Collins was on the attack. When the fort’s southern doors opened, Kattabomman and his forces audaciously attacked the corps stationed at the back of his fort, and slew their commander Lt. Collins.

The British after suffering heavy losses, decided to wait for reinforcements and heavy artillery from Palayamkottai. Sensing that his fort could not survive a barrage from heavy cannons, Kattabomman left the fort that night.

A price was set on Kattabomman’s head. Thanapathi Pillai and 16 others were taken prisoners. Thanapathi Pillai was executed and his head perched on a bamboo pole was displayed at Panchalankurichi to demoralise the resisters. Soundra Pandian Nayak, another rebel leader, was brutally done to death by having his brains dashed against a village wall.

Veerapandiya Kattabomman hid in so many places including thirumayam, virachilai and finally stayed at Kolarpatti at Rajagopala Naicker’s house where the forces surrounded the house. Kattabomman and his aides fled from there and took refuge in the Thirukalambur forests close to Pudu-k-kottai. Bannerman ordered the Raja of Pudukkottai to arrest Kattabomman. Accordingly, Kattabomman was captured and on October 16, 1799 the case was taken up (nearly three weeks after his arrest near Pudukkottai).

After a summary trial, Kattabomman was hanged unceremoniously on a Tamarind tree in Kayathar (near Thirunelveli).

Some of the other noteworthy persons who were hanged along with Kattabomman were Veeraghechayan Naicker, Dali Ethalappa Naicker and Palayakarrars of Kaadalkudi, Nagalapuram Puthur, Vripachy, Sivagangai, to death by hanging on charges of treason.

The Fort of Panchalankurichi was razed to the ground and all of Kattabomman’s wealth was looted by the English soldiers. Few years later, after the second Polygar war, the site of the captured fort was ploughed up and sowed with castor oil and salt so that it should never again be inhabited by the orders of the colonial government.

In subsequent years, a good deal of legend and folklore developed around Kattabomman and the Marudu Brothers. Kayatharu, where Kattabomman was executed has remained a place of political pilgrimage.

In his Tinnevelly Gazetteer of 1917, H. R. Pate notes the presence, in Kayatharu, of “a great pile of stones of all sizes, which represents the accumulated offerings by wayfarers of the past hundred years. Folk songs recalling the heroism of the Poligar leaders remain alive in Tamil Nadu to this day…”

The popular Tamil slang for a traitor or committing treason is Ettapa or Ettapan, courtesy the Ettayapuram Polygar whom the British later conferred the title of Raja. But it is disputed that Ettapan committed treason Kattabomman was arrested by King of Pudukottai. The Campa Cola ground in Chennai belongs/belonged to Ettappan family. Lately there is cry that unfair portrayal of Ettappan in the film Kattabomman in which actor Sivaji Ganesan gave a great performance, is the main cause for this. It seems that Ma.Po.Si(Ma.Po.Sivanyanam) who wrote the dialogues for the film had some misunderstanding with the Ettappan family.

Veerapandiya Kattabomman  also known as Katta Bomman was an 18th century Indian Palaiyakkarar chieftain from Panchalankurichi and who was one of the earliest to oppose the British rule. He waged a war with the British six decades before Indian War of Independence which occurred in 1857 in Northern parts of India. After a bloody war with the British he was captured by British and hanged in 1799 CE. His fort was destroyed and his wealth looted by the British army. Today Panchalankurichi is a historically important place in the present day Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu state, India.

Veerapandiya Kattabomman was born to Jagaveera Kattabomman and Arumugathammal on January 4, 1760. He had two younger brothers Dalavai Kumarasami and Duraisingam. Veerapandiyan was fondly called ‘Karuthaiah’ (the black prince), and Dalavai Kumarasami, ‘Sevathaiah’ (the white prince). Duraisingam, a good orator, was nicknamed ‘Oomaidurai’ meaning the Mute Prince.

Azhagiya Veerapandiapuram (Otta-pidaram of today) was ruled by Jagaveera Pandiyan. He had a minister Bommu, also a brave warrior, who was known as Getti-bommulu in Telugu, after the god Sastha Ayyappan Swamy to describe his strength and fighting qualities which over a period of time, became Kattabomman in Tamil. Katta-bomman ascended the throne after Jagaveera Pandiyan, who had no issue, as Adi Kattabomman, the first of the clan of Katta-bomman.

Legend has it that during a hunting trip into the forests of Salikulam (close to Azhagiya Pandiyapuram) one of the Kattabommans watched the spectacle of a hare chasing seven hounds. Kattabomman was amazed at this miracle. Believing that the land possessed great powers that could instil courage in people, he built his fort there and named it Panchalankurichi.

On February 2, 1790, Veerapandiyan, 30, became the king of Panchalankurichi as Veera Pandia Kattabomman supposed to be the 47th ruler of the region and the 5th ruler from the Kattabomman clan and a Palya-karrar (or Polygar) of the Madurai Nayak kingdom.

After the collapse of the Vijayanagara Empire in the mid-16th century, their governors of Tamil Nadu, declared independence and established independent kingdoms. The old Pandiya country came to be governed by Naicker rulers in Madurai, who in turn divided their territories into 72 Palayams. These 72 Palayams were franchised to a Palayakarrar (Tamil word) or Polygar or Poligar (a British Term), who had to administer their territories, collect taxes, run the local judiciary, and maintain a battalion of troops for the Naicker rulers. Their function was a mixture of military governance and civil administration.

The regional/local chieftains and rulers who were earlier subordinates to the Madurai Kings became Polygars (or Palaya-karrar).

The Nayak rule in Madurai which controlled the entire West Tamil Nadu after two centuries came to an abrupt end in 1736 when Chanda Sahib of Arcot seized the Madurai throne from the last queen of Madurai in an act of treason. Chanda Sahib was later killed after the Carnatic Wars and the territory came under the Nawab of Arcot. The Palaya-karrars of the old Madurai country refused to recognize the new Muslim rulers driving the Nawab of Arcot to bankruptcy, who also indulged in lavishes like building palaces before sustaining his authority in the region.

Finally the Nawab resorted to borrowing huge sums from the British East India Company, erupting as a scandal in the British Parliament. The Nawab of Arcot finally gave the British the right to collect taxes and levies from the southern region in lieu of the money he had borrowed. The East India Company took advantage of the situation and plundered all the wealth of the people in the name of tax collection. They even leased the country in 1750’s to a savage warrior Muhammed Yusuf Khan (alias Marutha Nayagam), who killed many of the Polygars including and later got himself killed by the Arcot British forces.

Many of the Polygars submitted, only with the exception of Katta-bomman.

Kattabomman refused to pay his dues and for a long time refused to meet Jackson the Collector of the East India Company. Finally, he met Jackson at Ramalinga Vilasam, the palace of Sethupathi of Ramanathapuram. The meeting turned violent and ended in a skirmish in which the Deputy Commandant of the Company’s forces, Clarke was slain. Kattabomman and his men fought their way to freedom and safety, but Thanapathi Pillai, Kattabomman’s secretary was taken prisoner.

You can check out the next part here…..

OKSR Kumaraswamy Mudaliar who was a famous freedom fighter in Tamil Nadu and he was born on 04-10-1904 in the small down named as Chennimalai in Tiruppur District of Tamil Nadu. He was popularly known as Tiruppur Kumaran. He involved himself in the Indian freedom movement in his young age and he participated in many struggles in the Indian freedom movement.

Tiruppur Kumaran had played a major vital role in the Indian freedom movement. He started “Desa Bandhu Youth Association” by grouping the youths and young persons from Tamilnadu to struggle against the British government to get freedom. Many persons got inspire and involved in the freedom struggle with Tiruppur Kumaran. He conducted many protest march against the British government in many places of Tamil Nadu. He got more inspiration from the father our Nation Mahatma Gandhi. He followed the procedures and methods which was suggested by Gandhiji in the Indian freedom movement. Tiruppur Kumaran had also participated in Congress movement from the Tiruppur’s contribution.

Thiruppur kumaran in his youth was inspired by the force with which all freedom fighters fought and was also melted by the struggles faced by the native people. So his acts were always strong and forceful.

The Tamil Nadu people are always remembering the contribution of Tiruppur Kumaran for the freedom of India by conducting various functions and programmes by the name of Tiruppur Kumaran. A memorial statue for Tiruppur Kumaran was erected in the park which is very near to Tiruppur Railway station. There is a street by his name which is called as “Kumaran Salai”. There is also a college in his name in Tiruppur and it is called as “Tiruppur Kumaran College”. The Government of India had released a commemorative stamp in his name on October 2004 during the 100th birth anniversary of Tiruppur Kumaran.

The great and famous freedom fighter of Tamil Nadu, Tiruppur Kumaran died on 11th January, 1932. His dead was very cruel that the Police assaulted him during the protest against the British colonial government. He was so patriotic that he died by holding the National flag of India which was banned by the British government. He is also called as “Kodi Kaththa Kumaran” due to this incident.

Veera Mangai Velunachiyar was one of the queens in the 18th century in South India. She rebelled against the British Empire and fought for the freedom of India.  She was born in 1730 AD to the Mannar Sellamuthu Sethupathy and to Rani Sakandhimuthal of  Ramnad Kingdom.  She was the only daughter of this Royal family. The Royal couple had no male heir.  The royal family brought up the Princess, Velunachiyar, like  Prince of Ramnad due to this reason. She was trained in the skills of using weapons and also in martial arts like Valari, stick fighting  etc. She learnt horse riding and archery earlier. The Royal couple had engaged teachers to teach her many languages like French, English and Urdu. Thus this young brave Princess had excellent training in all war techniques. She was a scholar in many languages and was ready to rule the Ramnad Kingdom . She married Sivagangai Mannar Muthuvaduganathar at the age of sixteen.  In the year 1772 , the English invaded her kingdom . Velu Nachiyar heard that her husband Raja Muthu Vaduganathar and her daughter young Princess Gowri Nachiyar were killed in Kalaiyar Koil war. This war was held in Kalaiyar Koil palace. British troops attacked the palace under the command of Lt.Col. Bon Jour . She was very much worried and wanted to take revenge. Dalavay Thandavaraya Pillai and Maruthu brothers sustained injuries. They promised to recapture the samasthan to punish the English. Dalavay Thandavaraya Pillai, an incredible and distinguished person was the most powerful administer in Sivagangai samsthanam.  Thandavaraya Pillai, the loyalist served (1700-1773) as Palavay and also as Pirathani under the three rulers of Sivagangai samsthanam. He was responsible for the development of Sivagangai samsthanam . At first he served the King Sasivarna Periya Udaiya Thevar during 1730-1750. Later he served under Muthu Vaduganatha Thevar, the King during 1750-1772 . He also served as *Pirathani to the queen Rani Velu Nachiyar.Here Dalavay means  military chief and the Pirathani means  chief minister. Pirathani was responsible for  the improvement of Foreign affairs. Thus the two charges were the most important and also  powerful .

He rendered his service with loyalty from the beginning of this samsthanam. He administered well and helped in the development. The King Udaiya Thevar was very much pleased because of his good administration and granted him his hereditary management. It shows the significance of loyalty of Dalavay Thandavaraya Pillai.   He advised Veera Mangai Velunachiar to move to different places often in order to avoid British invaders . Meanwhile Dalavay Thandavarayan Pillai wrote a letter to Sultan Hyder Ali on behalf of Velu Nachiyar to provide 5000 infantry and 5000 cavalry to defeat the British army. But unfortunately he passed away due to old age. She decided to meet Hyder Ali after the demise of Dalavay Thandavarayan Pillai  at  Mysore with the help of his son. She could explain in detail in Urdu all her problems with East India Company. She explained him her strong opposition of British regime. Hyder Ali was very much pleased and promised to help her in this conflict. He accepted her request with sympathy and provided the necessary military assistance. He ordered Syed Karki of Dindigul fort gladar to provide the required military equipment to Rani Velu Nachiyar. He released 5000 infantry and 5000 cavalry to Rani Velu Nachiyar immediately. Her troops advanced to Sivaganga with the help provided by Maruthu brothers. The Nawab of Arcot put so many hindrances to avoid the advancement of Rani Velu Nachiyar’s combined troops. The queen and Maruthu brothers overcame all hurdles. They geared up the troops and entered Sivaganga. She defeated the Nawab of Arcot and took him as a captivator. She re-captured her Sivaganga samsthanam with the help of Hyder Ali and crowned as queen of the Sivagangai seemai. Velu Nachiyar is the first queen who raised the revolt  against the British emperor, according to historians. Prof.Sanjeevi  mentioned in his ‘ Maruthiruvar’ book that ‘ the bravery queen Velu Nachiyar raised revolt against English emperor and fought for the freedom of India 85 years before Jhansi Rani’s freedom struggle in North . Venkatam further stated that Velu Nachiyar is India’s Joan of Arc

Will is victory if Knowledge is Power

Anna,Tamilnadu

Conjeevaram Natarajan Annadurai (15 September 1909 – 3 February 1969), popularly Arignar Anna (“Anna, the scholar”), was an Indian politician who served as 1st Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for 20 days in 1969 and fifth and last Chief Minister of Madras State from 1967 until 1969 when the name of the state of Madras was changed to Tamil Nadu. He was the first member of a Dravidian party to hold either post.

He was well known for his oratorical skills and was an acclaimed writer in the Tamil language. He scripted and acted in several plays. Some of his plays were later made into movies. He was the first politician from the Dravidian parties to use Tamil cinema extensively for political propaganda. Born in a middle-class family, he first worked as a school teacher, then moved into the political scene of the Madras Presidency as a journalist. He edited several political journals and enrolled as a member of the Dravidar Kazhagam. As an ardent follower of Periyar E. V. Ramasamy, he rose in stature as a prominent member of the party.

Hindi was first recommended to be an apt language for official purposes in India by a committee headed by Motilal Nehru in 1928. This move was opposed by people and politicians of Tamil Nadu, since they considered that it would make them second class citizens when compared to that of native Hindi speaking North Indians.

Madras Anti Hindi agitation, 1965

When India became a republic with its own constitution in 1950, the constitution had given special status to the Hindi language, which was to gain official status after 15 years in 1965. This move was regarded with anxiety by students in Tamil Nadu. Speaking of making Hindi as official language of India, Annadurai said It is claimed that Hindi should be the common language because it is spoken by the majority. Why should we then claim the tiger as our national animal instead of the rat which is so much more numerous? Or the peacock as our national bird when the crow is ubiquitous?. In view of continued threat to impose Hindi, the DMK held an open-air conference against Hindi imposition at Kodambakkam, Chennai in August 1960, which Annadurai presided over. He gave black flags to leading functionaries, to be shown to the President of India during his visit to the state. Sensing an uprising, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru assured in the Parliament that English would continue to be the official language of India, as long as non-Hindi speaking people desire. DMK gave up the plan of showing black flags and Annadurai appealed to the Union Government to bring about a constitutional amendment incorporating the assurance.

On 10 September 1968 Annadurai travelled to New York for medical treatment and he was operated for Cancer in the gullet at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. He returned to Chennai in November and continued to address several official functions against medical advice. His health deteriorated further and he died on 3 February 1969. His cancer was attributed to his habit of chewing tobacco. His funeral had the highest number of attendees until then, as registered with The Guinness Book of Records. An estimated 15 million people attended it.His remains were buried in the northern end of Marina Beach, which is now called Anna Memorial

Rowthiram Pazhagu

Mahakavi Barathi

Subramanian Bharathi also known as Bharathiyar (11 December 1882 – 11 September 1921), was a Tamil writer, poet, journalist, Indian independence activist, social reformer and polyglot. Popularly known as “Mahakavi Bharathi” (“Great Poet Bharathi”), he was a pioneer of modern Tamil poetry and is considered one of the greatest Tamil literary figures of all time. His numerous works included fiery songs kindling patriotism during the Indian Independence movement.

Born in Ettayapuram of Tirunelveli district (present day Thoothukudi) in 1882, Bharathi had his early education in Tirunelveli and Varanasi and worked as a journalist with many newspapers, including The Hindu, Bala Bharata, Vijaya, Chakravarthini, the Swadesamitran and India. In 1908, an arrest warrant was issued against Bharati by the government of British India lived until 1918.

After his father’s demise with help from his relatives, he went to Varanasi or Kasi to learn about the religious customs. There he was educated in all areas of Hindu spirituality and gained the reputation of being a rebel. Once his education was over, Bharathiyar came back to Ettayapuram to continue his life with his wife. He abandoned many of the customs specific to his community. He cut his hair short, wore a turban or Mundasu, and refused to wear the Punool a white thread across his chest. His actions of not abiding by community rules caused a lot of protests from people from his community. Some close to him even regarded him as losing his mind. Though he criticized customs, he was a staunch devotee of Kalli Devi.

After a few years, he moved to Chennai and continued to work in a magazine and wrote against the British. His health saw no signs of recovery and slipped into more distress. One day while feeding the temple elephant of Triplicane temple, the elephant pushed him away. He fell on the ground and sustained head injury. His weak health status and head injury combined made him bedridden. And he passed away peacefully.

His words are way ahead of his time, and he is a strong supporter of violence if needed. He attended meetings organized by V.O.C.People used to gather in his session to hear his passionate speech and his attacks on the British. He participated at the Surat congress conference, where he met Bala Gangadhar Tilak.

Bharathiyar started to work in a newspaper published from Pondicherry and distributed across Tamilnadu, which carried the seeds of freedom and sometimes violence. His health was also deteriorating during this period and his earnings too. During his stay in Pondicherry, he met many of the extremists who were taken up weapons to bring down British rule in India. One of the crucial people was Savarkar, who was one of the accused in the collector Ashe murder case. Bharathiyar wanted to learn a sword fight, but his health was not in good shape to accommodate it. He coined the famous phrase.

Vallinayagan Ulaganathan Chidambaram (5 September 1872 – 18 November 1936), popularly known by his initials, V.O.C. (spelled வ.உ.சி in Tamil), also known as Kappalottiya Tamizhan “The Tamil Helmsman”, was an Indian freedom fighter and leader of Indian National Congress. Founder of Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company in 1906 to compete against the monopoly of the British India Steam Navigation Company (BISNC) He launched the first indigenous Indian shipping service between Tuticorin and Colombo with the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company, competing against British ships. Tuticorin Port Trust, one of India’s thirteen major ports, is named after him. At one time a member of the Indian National Congress, he was later charged with sedition by the British government and sentenced to life imprisonment, and his barrister license was revoked.

V. O. Chidambaram Pillai was born on 5 September 1872 in a vellalar family in Ottapidaram, Tuticorin District to Ulaganathan Pillai and Paramayee Ammal. When Chidambaram was six years old, he learned Tamil from teacher Veeraperumal Annavi. He heard stories about Shiva from his grandmother and stories from the Ramayana from his grandfather. He heard stories from Mahabharatha told by Allikulam Subramanya Pillai. As a child, he played goli (mkarbles), kabaddi, horse riding, swimming, stilt walking, archery, wrestling, silambattam and chess.

He learned English from a Taluk officer named Krishnan in the evenings. When Krishnan was transferred, Chidambaram’s father built a school with the help of villagers and appointed Aramvalarthanatha Pillai from Ettayapuram as the English teacher. The school was run by a priest at Pudhiamuthur. At fourteen, Chidambaram went to Thoothukudi to continue his studies. He studied at CEOA High School and Caldwell High School and in Thoothukudi at the Hindu College High School, Tirunelveli.

Chidambaram worked as Taluk office clerk for some time before his father sent him to Tiruchirappalli to study law. He passed his pleadership exam in 1894, returning to Ottapidaram to become a pleader in 1895.

In Chennai, Chidambaram met Swami Ramakrishnananda, a saint who belonged to Swami Vivekananda Ashram (monastery), who advised him to “do something for the nation”. Here he met the Tamil poet Bharathiyaar who shared his political ideology. The two men became close friends.In the 1890s and 1900s India’s independence movement and the Swadeshi movement, which confirms the politic parcel initiated by Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Lala Lajpat Rai of the Indian National Congress (INC), were at their peak. From 1892 Chidambaram was influenced by Tilak Maharaj and became his disciple. Along with Subramanya Siva and Subramanya Bharathi, he became a prominent spokesperson for the cause in the Madras Presidency. Following the partition of Bengal in 1905, Chidambaram entered politics, joining the Indian National Congress and taking a hardliner stance. He also presided at the Salem District Congress session.

Chidambaram moved to Kovilpatti and practiced as a lawyer. He rejoined the Congress party in 1927 and presided over the third political conference held at Salem. He said that he wanted to join Congress again because he noticed a remarkable change in the policies of Congress and was happy to note that the policies of which he did not approve were withdrawn one by one. However, after the Salem conference Chidambaram again severed his contact with Congress.

In 1929 he moved to Thoothukudi, where he spent his time writing and publishing Tamil books. By 1935, he had written commentary on the first book of the Tirukkural (Book of Virtue) and was published under a different title. However, it was only in 2008 that the complete work of his commentary on the Kural was published.

If you are interested check out the part two here.