Subramania Bharati

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In this Indian name, the name Chinnaswami is a patronymic, and the person should be referred to by the given name, Subramaniyan.
C. Subramania Bharati
Subramania Bharati
Born(1882-12-11)11 December 1882
Ettayapuram, Tirunelveli district, Madras Presidency, British India
(present-day Thoothukudi district, Tamil Nadu, India)
Died11 September 1921(1921-09-11) (aged 38)
Madras, Madras Presidency, British India
(present-day Tamil Nadu, India)
Other namesBharatiyar, Subbaiah, Sakthi Dasan, Mahakavi, Mundasu Kavignar, Veera Kavi
CitizenshipIndian
Occupations
  • Journalist
  • Poet
  • Writer
  • Teacher
  • Independence activist
MovementIndian independence movement
SpouseChellamma (m. 1896–1921)
Children2
FamilyRajkumar Bharathi (great-grandson)
Signature

C. Subramania Bharati[a](IPA: /ˌsuˈbrəˌmənˈjʌ ˈbɑːˌrʌθi/; born C. Subramaniyan 11 December 1882 – 11 September 1921) was a Tamil writer, poet, journalist, Indian independence activist, social reformer and polyglot. He was bestowed the title Bharati for his excellence in poetry. He was a pioneer of modern Tamil poetry and is considered one of the greatest Tamil literary figures of all time. He is popularly known by his title Bharati or Bharathiyaar and also by the other title "Mahakavi Bharati" ("the great poet Bharati"). His numerous works included patriotic songs composed during the Indian Independence movement. He fought for the emancipation of women, against child marriage, vehemently opposed the caste system, and stood for reforming society and religion.

Born in Ettayapuram of Tirunelveli district (present-day Thoothukudi) in 1882, Bharati had his early education in Tirunelveli. He later lived in Varanasi for sometime when he was exposed to Hindu theology and new languages. He worked as a journalist with many newspapers, including Swadesamitran, The Hindu, Bala Bharata, Vijaya, Chakravarthini and India. He considered Sister Nivedita, a disciple of Swami Vivekananda, as his guru.

In 1908, the British Government issued an arrest warrant for Bharathi which pushed him to live in exile in the French-controlled Pondicherry for about ten years until 1918. He was attacked by an Indian elephant at Thiruvallikeni Parthasarathy Temple whom he fed daily and died a few months later on 11 September 1921.

Bharthi was well-versed in several languages ​​and had a deep passion for Tamil. His works covered political, social and spiritual themes. Songs and poems composed by Bharthi are widely used in Tamil literature, music and daily life. His popular works include Panjali Sabatham, Kannan Paatu, Kuyil Paatu, Paapa Paatu, Chinnanchriu Kiliye, Vinayagar Nanmanimalai and Tamil translations of Patanjali's Yoga Sutra and Bhagavat Gita. Bharathi was the first poet whose literature was nationalized in 1949.

Early life[edit]

Subramanya Bharathi with his wife Chellamma

Subramaniyan was born in a Brahmin family on 11 December 1882 in the village of Ettayapuram in Tirunelveli district, Madras Presidency (present day Thoothukudi district, Tamil Nadu).[1] His parents were Chinnaswami Iyer and Lakshmi Ammal.[2] He lost his mother at the age of five in 1897. After that, he was brought up by his father and his grandmother.[3]

His father wanted him to learn English and Maths and become an engineer.[4] From a very young age, Subramaniyan was musically and poetically inclined. At around the young age of 11, Subramanian was conferred the title of "Bharathi", meaning blessed by the goddess of learning Saraswati for his excellence in poetry.[3] In 1897, at the age of 15, he was married to Chellamma, who was seven years old. He lost his father at the age of sixteen.[3] After the death of his father, he wrote a letter to the Raja of Ettayapuram, requesting for financial assistance. Bharti worked in the court of Ettayapuram for a while before he left the job and went to Varanasi. During his stay in Varanasi, Bharathi was exposed to Hindu spirituality and nationalism. This broadened his outlook and he learned Sanskrit, Hindi and English. He changed his outward appearance, growing a beard and wore a turban.[2]

Literary life and independece activism[edit]

Bharathi in the 1900s

Bharathi returned to Ettayapuram during 1901 and served as the court poet of the Raja of Ettayapuram. He served as a Tamil teacher from August to November 1904 in Sethupathy High School in Madurai.[4] During this period, Bharathi understood the need to be well-informed of the world outside and took interest in the world of journalism and the print media. In the same year, Bharathi joined as an assistant editor at Swadesamitran, a Tamil daily.[2] In December 1905, he attended a session of Indian National Congress in Varanasi. On his journey back home, he met Sister Nivedita, who was Swami Vivekananda's spiritual heir. She inspired Bharathi to recognize the rights and privilege of women.[2] Bharathi considered her as a embodiment of Hindu goddess Shakti and considered Nivedita as his Guru. He later attended the Indian National Congress session in Calcutta held under Dadabhai Naoroji, which demanded Swaraj and boycott of British goods.[4]

A weekly newspaper edited by Bharathi in 1907

By April 1907, he started editing the Tamil weekly India and the English newspaper Bala Bharatham along with M.P.T. Acharya.[2] These newspapers served as a means of expressing Bharathi's creativity and he continued to write poems in these editions. His writings included diverse topics ranging from nationalism to contemplations on the relationship between God and Man. He also wrote on the Russian and French Revolutions.[5]

Cover page of the 1909 magazine Vijaya, published first from Pondicherry

Bharathi participated in the Indian National Congress meeting held in Surat in 1907 along with V.O. Chidambaram Pillai and Mandayam Srinivachariar.[2] The meeting deepened the divisions within the Congress with a section preferring armed resistance. This section was primarily led by Bal Gangadhar Tilak, which was supported by Bharathi, Chidambaram Pillai and Varathachariyar.[4] In 1908, the British instituted a case against Chidambaram Pillai. In the same year, the proprietor of the journal India in which Bharathi was writing, was arrested in Madras.[2] Faced with the prospect of an imminent arrest, Bharathi escaped to Pondicherry, which was under the French rule.[6][7]

The house in which Bharathi lived in Pondicherry

In Pondicherry, Bharathi edited and published the weekly journal India, a Tamil daily Vijaya, an English monthly Bala Bharatham and a local weekly Suryodayam. The British tried to ban Bharathi's publications and the newspapers India and Vijaya were banned in British India in 1909.[4] During his exile, Bharathi had the opportunity to meet other revolutionary leaders of the Indian Independence movement like Aurobindo, Lajpat Rai and V.V.S. Aiyar, who had also sought asylum under the French. Bharathi assisted Aurobindo in publishing the journals Arya and Karma Yogi.[5] He also started learning Vedic literature. Three of his greatest works namely, Kuyil Pattu, Panjali Sabatham and Kannan Pattu were composed during 1912. He also translated Vedic hymns, Patanjali's Yoga Sutra and Bhagavat Gita to Tamil language.[4]

When Bharathi entered the British India near Cuddalore in November 1918, he was promptly arrested.[2] He was imprisoned in the Central prison in Cuddalore for three weeks from 20 November to 14 December. He was released after the intervention of Annie Besant and C.P. Ramaswamy Aiyar. He was stricken by poverty and ill health during this period. In the following year, Bharathi met Gandhi for the first time. He resumed editing Swadesamitran in 1920 from Madras.[8]

Death[edit]

Subramanya Bharathi's Tamil songs .
Suttum vizhi
Ninnai charan adaindhen
Chinnan chiru kiliye
Senthamizh naadu ennum podhinile
Aasai mugam
Problems playing these files? See media help.

Bharathi was badly affected by the imprisonments and struggled from ill health. In 1920, a general amnesty was issued which finally removed restrictions on his movements. He delivered his last speech at Karungalpalayam Library in Erode on the topic Man is Immortal.[9] He was struck by an Indian elephant named Lavanya at the Thiruvallikeni Parthasarathy Temple whom he used to feed often. When he fed a coconut to the elephant, the elephant attacked him and although he survived the incident, his health deteriorated. A few months later, he died in the early morning on 11 September 1921. Though Bharathi was considered a great poet and nationalist, it was recorded that only 14 people attended his funeral.[2]

Literary work[edit]

Bharathi is considered one of the pioneers of modern Tamil literature.[10] He is known by the nickname "Makavi" ("The Great Poet").[11] Bharathi used simple words and rhythms, unlike the previous century works in Tamil, which had complex vocabulary. He also proposed novel ideas and techniques in his poems. He used a metre called Nondi Chindu in most of his works, which was earlier used by Gopalakrisnha Bharathiar.[12]

Bharathi's poetry expressed progressive and reformist ideals. His poetry was a forerunner to modern Tamil poetry in different aspects and combined classical and contemporary elements. He penned thousands of verses on diverse topics like Indian Nationalism, love, children, nature, glory of the Tamil language, and odes to prominent freedom fighters. He fought for the emancipation of women, against child marriage, vehemently opposed the caste system, and stood for reforming society and religion.[13][14] His poems were the first to be nationalized in India in 1949.[15]

His popular works include Panjali Sabatham, Kannan Paatu, Kuyil Paatu, Paapa Paatu, Chinnanchriu Kiliye and Vinayagar Nanmanimalai. He also translated Patanjali's Yoga Sutra and Bhagavat Gita to Tamil.[4] Apart from this he also wrote various patriotic songs, religious verses, short stories and translations of speeches of reformist leaders.[8]

Legacy[edit]

Bharathi's house in Ettayapuram

The last years of his life were spent in a house in Thiruvallikeni in Chennai. The house was bought and renovated by the Government of Tamil Nadu in 1993 and named "Bharathi Illam" (Home of Bharathi).[16] The house in which he was born in Ettayapuram and the house where he lived in Puducherry are maintained as memorial houses. A seven-foot tall statue of Bharathi, a memorial complex and a photo exhibition related to his life history are on display at Etayapuram, his birth place.

In 1987, Subramanyam Bharati Award was constituted to award contributions to literature. The award is conferred annually by the Ministry of Human Resource Development of Government of India. Bharathiar University, a state university, was established in 1982 at Coimbatore. There are many statutes of Bharathi including the Indian Parliament and Marina Beach facade in Chennai.[17] Many roads are named after him including Bharathiar road in Coimbatore and Subramaniam Bharti Marg in New Delhi.[18][19] Numerous schools, colleges and educational institutions are named after him.[20]

In popular culture[edit]

A Tamil film titled Bharathi was made in the year 2000 on the life of the poet by Gnana Rajasekaran, which won National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil.[21] The movie Kappalottiya Thamizhan based on the life of V. O. Chidambaram Pillai also chronicles the life of Bharathi. The musical duo Hiphop Tamizha use a caricature of Bharati as a part of their logo.[22][23] Many of the poems written by Bharati are used in various films in the form of songs.[24] Phrases or lines from his poems are also used as film titles.[25][26]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ name

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Why we're so turned off by Bharathiyar's saffron turban: Did the orange fall too far from the tree". Edex Live. Archived from the original on 28 December 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Kasi Viswanathan, Muralidharan. "In Memory of Bharathi". BBC Tamil (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
  3. ^ a b c "Subramanya Bharathi biography". Tamil Virtual University. Archived from the original on 12 October 2022. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Bharati, Subramania; Rajagopalan, Usha (2013). Panchali's Pledge. Hachette UK. p. 1. ISBN 978-9-350-09530-0. Archived from the original on 28 December 2023. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
  5. ^ a b Indian Literature: An Introduction. Pearson Education India. 2005. pp. 125–126. ISBN 9788131705209. Archived from the original on 28 December 2023. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  6. ^ "On the streets where Bharati walked". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 25 June 2020. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  7. ^ "Bharati's Tamil daily Vijaya traced in Paris". The Hindu. 5 December 2004. Archived from the original on 21 November 2016.
  8. ^ a b Lal, Mohan (1992). Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature: sasay to zorgot. Sahitya Akademi. pp. 4191–3. ISBN 978-8-126-01221-3.
  9. ^ "Last speech delivered in Erode". The Hindu. 15 April 2008. Archived from the original on 15 April 2008. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  10. ^ Annamalai, E. (1968). "Changing society and modern Tamil literature". Tamil Issue. 4 (3/4): 21–36. JSTOR 40874190.(subscription required)
  11. ^ "Congress Veteran reenacts Bharathis escape to Pondy". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 2 April 2021. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  12. ^ George, K.M., ed. (1992). Modern Indian Literature, an Anthology: Plays and prose. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi. p. 379. ISBN 978-81-7201-324-0. Archived from the original on 28 December 2023. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  13. ^ "Knowing Subramania Bharati beyond his turban colour". Telegraph India. Archived from the original on 26 February 2021. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  14. ^ Raman, Aroon (21 December 2009). "All too human at the core". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 10 February 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  15. ^ "Bharathi, the first poet whose works were nationalised". The Hindu. 2 August 2015. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  16. ^ Rangarajan (11 January 2021). A Madras Mystery. Notion Press. ISBN 9781637147573. Archived from the original on 3 September 2023. Retrieved 28 December 2023.
  17. ^ Gupta, Ameeta; Kumar, Ashish (2006). Handbook of Universities, Volume 1. Atlantic Publishers & Dist. p. 14. ISBN 978-8-126-90607-9.
  18. ^ "Free helmet distribution". The Times of India. 6 October 2015. Archived from the original on 10 August 2017. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  19. ^ "Subramaniam Bharti Marg". The Indian Express. 3 October 2015. Archived from the original on 6 October 2015. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  20. ^ "Activities: School". Sevalaya. Archived from the original on 5 December 2013. Retrieved 23 December 2013.
  21. ^ "SA women 'swoon' over Sanjay". Sunday Tribune. South Africa. 30 March 2008. Archived from the original on 10 June 2014. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
  22. ^ Akshaya Raju (16 October 2014). "English Pesnalum Tamizhan Da – A Hip Hop Tamizha Exclusive". Guindy Times. Archived from the original on 28 November 2014. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  23. ^ Avinash Gopinath (11 November 2014). "Kollywood Gets A New Music Director!". Oneindia.in. Archived from the original on 21 November 2014. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
  24. ^ "Filmy Ripples – Mahakavi Bharathiyar's works in Tamil Film Music". 7 August 2017. Archived from the original on 23 December 2018. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  25. ^ "Ner Konda Paarvai : Subramania Bharati's line from a poem becomes the title of Ajith-starrer". International Business Times. 5 March 2019. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  26. ^ "Bharathi references in Tami cinema". Vikatan. Archived from the original on 15 March 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2021.

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]

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