A tribute to the fearless man with a turban and big moustache

It was early 20th century... It was more than 50years since Sepoy Mutiny(1857) happened, Well, British governance was facing tough agitation from Indian tribal leaders, Nawab's and Kings in many forms.

By then British were  ruling India for more than a century and they have no plans to leave India because of the wealth it possesses, abundance of raw materials and cheap resources . They started Indian rail, planted tea gardens, developed hill stations and India has became a county( I guess) and integral part of Great Britain and Indians became immigrants in their very own country

While British were developing infrastructure for the sake of rich and the powerful, we Indians were busy fighting against each other in the name of caste, creed and religion. Many castes were prohibited from entering the temples, denied formal education and women had no respect and rights  in the society. Child marriage, bonded labor  and satti were in practice.

India was in dire need of personalities who could stand against British, who could stand against the superstitious belief of the society and fight for women rights.

One such personality from south India was ( read till the end to know about him ). He was poet and  journalist, wearing a turban and had big moustache.. He is simply fearless.. In my view his turban symbolizes self respect and freedom and his big moustache symbolizes courage. Britishers wouldn't dare to jail him.. where ever he went he made an uprising against British Raj with his songs and high energy speeches. Equally he was fighting against un-touchability, women rights and other superstitious belief.

He declared "Men and women are equal" he insisted "discrimination in the name of caste is a sin" Though he hailed from upper caste he used to  bring children( who were denied education becoz of their caste) to his home and educate them.

I am pretty sure that whoever reads his poetry, will be inspired instantly. He travelled across Tamilnadu creating uprising against British, preaching social equality and women's right. He supported Russian revolution and believed Russian revolution will bring prosperity in Russia. He was against German occupying Belgium during world war I. This clearly shows his interest in world politics too.

He wrote many devotional songs and epic songs "பாஞ்சாலி சபதம்(Panchali Sapatham)" is one of its kind. You can find a complete collection in http://www.tamilvu.org/library/l9100/html/l9100ba1.htm

No doubt you could have guessed, who that fearless man with a turban and big moustache by now.  He is none other than "Mahakavi subramanya Bharathiyar" born in Ettayapuram(Thoothukudi dist. in Tamilnadu) on 11th December 1882. He was hit by an elephant in Parthasarathy temple located in Chennai and succumbed to injuries on 11th September 1921. He was the chief editor of  "Swadesamitran" a Tamil daily, which was always under the radar of British government for publishing article which fuelled freedom struggle.

Though he lived only for 39yrs, he made a big impact and today almost after a century of his demise people remember him for his poetry, ideologies and courage.
The fearless man with a turban and big moustache "Mahakavi subramanya Bharathiyar" lives in the heart of millions of Indians

Picture courtesy: Honorable Mr. Internet

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                                                                                                   Blog Article by: Allwyn Chellakumar