M.S. Kalyanasundaram
இந்தப் பக்கத்தை தமிழில் வாசிக்க: எம்.எஸ்.கல்யாணசுந்தரம்
M.S. Kalyanasundaram (March 28, 1901-1989) wrote novels and short stories in Tamil and is noted for the backdrops of his stories which remained largely unexplored in Tamil Literature. His finest work is Irubathu Varudangal (Twenty Years), in which he narrates the escape of a prisoner of war in World War II, who is trapped on a Pacific island.
Birth, Education
M.S. Kalyanasundaram was born on March 28, 1901, in Madurai, in a Saurashtra family. His father Sitaramaiya was a Gandhian. M.S. Kalyanasundaram’s elder brother ran a Gandhi Ashram called Vegavathi at Andipatti, near Madurai. In 1934, Sitaramaya stayed at the ashram and wrote the novel Karatur Ramu.
From the University of Punjab, M.S. Kalyanasundaram received a B.A degree and a Praveen degree in Hindi. He learned the Montessori method of teaching from Maria Montessori. He knew English, Tamil, Hindi, Urdu, Telugu, Bengali, Gujarati, Sanskrit, and German.
Personal Life
M.S. Kalyanasundaram was not married. It is believed that he contracted leprosy while serving in impoverished areas. He spent his final days in a hospital in Kodaikanal.
Politics
Accepting Gandhi's invitation to join the freedom struggle in 1942, M.S. Kalyanasundaram quit his job in the postal service. He wrote political articles in English, Tamil and Hindi. He produced Tamil-Hindi and Tamil-English dictionaries.
Literary life
Only his novel Irubathu Varudangal and a collection of short stories titled Ponmanal were published during M.S. Kalyanasundaram’s lifetime. K.A. Sachidanandam had the manuscript of his other novel Pagal Kanavu, which was released posthumously.
Publication of books
M.S. Kalyanasundaram was not interested in publishing his books. K.A. Sachidanandam, who got acquainted with him in the final days of his life, preserved the manuscripts. Except for Irubathu Varudangal, his other books went unnoticed. In 2001, twenty years after his passing, his second novel Pagal Kanavu was published from its manuscript.
Death
M.S. Kalyanasundaram passed away in 1989.
Literary Significance
M.S. Kalyanasundaram surpassed the general plotlines written in Tamil at the time, such as village life, family life, and romantic relationships. He wrote stories in completely new settings such as World War II etc. He had a realistic style of narration with intricate descriptions of animals and the surrounding. His works, which had not been in print for a long time, were brought into print by Tamizhini Publications in commemoration of his centenary year. Their readers considered them to be works that stood the test of time.
"M.S. Kalyanasundaram can be considered to be the writer whose civic duties prevented him from exploring his literary world. This prevented him from becoming a leading writer. But he touches on some essential places in the cultural movement. Therefore, his works are of much importance to Tamil Literature," says literary critic Jeyamohan. In his Ilakkiya Munnodigal Varisai, Jeyamohan places M.S. Kalyanasundaram as one of the pioneers of Tamil literature.
In his introduction to one of M.S. Kalyanasundaram’s books, T.J. Ranganathan says, "In terms of form, quality, and genre, all short stories of Kalyanasundaram are gems."
Works
- Irubathu Varudangal (Novel)
- Pagal Kanavu (Novel)
- Pon Manal (Collection of stories)
- Dailies
✅Finalised Page
