Murugavelan. R, the author of the famous Tamil novel ' Milir Kal ' is a Coimbatorean advocate. He is the only son of Rangammal ( a teacher from P.N.Pudur ) and A.Raju ( Superintendent with the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University ). His wife Bhanumathi happens to be Tamil Pandit and the couple are blessed with two daughters - Preethi and Nilavini.
Murugavelan. R, the author of the famous Tamil novel ' Milir Kal ' is a Coimbatorean advocate. He is the only son of Rangammal ( a teacher from P.N.Pudur ) and A.Raju ( Superintendent with the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University ). His wife Bhanumathi happens to be Tamil Pandit and the couple are blessed with two daughters - Preethi and Nilavini.
The bright author had done his schooling from Bishop Ubakaram Nadunilai Palli and Ramalingam Chettiar Higher Secondary School. Murugavelan did his B.A in English Literature from the Government Arts College and this was followed by a B.L from the Coimbatore Law College.
He began as a criminal lawyer but now attends to civil matters too. Murugavelan has written six books thus far and they include three translations - Confessions of an Economic Hitman by John Perkins, Red Tea ( A novel which talks about the Valparai Tea Estate Workers in 1920 ) by P.H.Daniel and Hangman's Journal ( A story of one Janardanan Pillai or aratchar , the hangman who had executed more than 117 people : the highest known thus far ) by Shashi Warrier. The three novels are Milir Kal ( his first book ), Mugilini ( based on Viscose ) and Sembulan ( thriller ). Murugavelan has a huge readership and fan following. He has been invited to speak about his works in a large number of places.
The author was candid while speaking about his work and the research connected, " I read the complete Silappadikaram with the aid of a number of commentaries. My wife Bhanumathi and her Tamil skills came in really handy.
I visited all the places concerned with this epic written by Ilango Adigal. Poom Puhar or Kaveripoompattinam, Madurai, the Kannagi Temple and Kodungallur which is the home to the Bhagawathy Temple. The book was written over six months but the research took a much longer period. I am grateful to Prof Santhalingan in this regard.
Prof Pari was of help too. Santhalingan is a very nice man and was quite helpful through and through. He would talk freely and was a big support in terms of research. His continuous availability was of great help. I found the story of Kannagi to be unique. She was a chaste woman, tormented lady, activist, leader and deity. She has become an inspiration for people fighting for their rights. I have just tried to show her in this perspective and thus making her relevant to each section of the society over the passage of time. The credit goes to the story teller Ilango Adigal. Of course archaeological evidences are absent and no other literary evidence is available."
Murugavelan is an avid reader and a part of the' manuscript' was actually handwritten. The publisher happens to be a friend - Tirupur Guna and he had opened shop by founding his own ' Ponnulagam', which published' Eriyum Panikaadu' ( Red Tea ). The author had actually met a number of comrades while writing this book and the influence of the ' comrades ' in terms of his experience are found all over the book. The author agrees that a lot of information came out due to the efforts of U.Ve. Swaminatha Iyer.
He also stated that Chettinad will always remembered in this context. Its a matter of pride that ' Milir Kal ' is part of the curriculum at the Manonmaniam Sundarnar University. It is also being prescribed for students who are pursuing their education at the Government Arts College ( Coimbatore ), P.S.G College of Arts & Science and the Poondi Tamil Kalloori.
The books takes us to the places connected with ' Silappadikaram ' and the literary journey is interesting. We get to learn that Poom Puhar or Kaveripoom Pattinam was an important trading port which had a population of about 200000 people. The city had foreigners visiting it for trade and commerce.
It was one of the important trade centres of its times. Its possible to infer that the people of such port cities were involved in Cosmopolitan commerce and several languages were common place for them. Kanchipuram was also one of the great centres of culture and commerce.
The author makes a hypothesis by trying to infer that Kannagi perhaps came from the Kongu region for she is called as Kongarselvi. He also tries to drive that Kovalan may have hailed from Kongunad. It may be because of the gem trade and the rubies found in the anklet belonging to Kannagi. Kongunad was always famous for its precious stones.
The author was eager to share some more , " Fishermen, scholars, farm labourers, Dalits and others spread across the Tamilnadu and Kerala are aware of the epic. The ballards connected with the epic have existed parallelly with the socially downtrodden classes. I have tried to portray the ' theripaatu ' scene in Kodungallur vividly. Its believed that Kodungallur Bhagawathy is none other than Kannagi. Its important because women in Kerala are shown here. Everyone will agree that Kannagi is a person for all seasons and is ever relevant. She is very special and is like any other epic hero of the country.
The successful Tamil society as seen in the Sangam Era perhaps existed centuries before and perhaps it reached its zenith during the time of Ilango Adigal, the brother of Cheran Senguttavan. Rubies or Manickkam came from Kongunad and Pearls or Muthu came from the land of the Pandyas. I was appalled to look at the conditions of the pre historic monuments and its a matter of concern. They are lying in neglect and people seem to have no regard for them. Dolmens, Cave paintings etc., are in a state of utter neglect. They are either getting desecrated or destroyed. The monuments need immediate attention and continuous protection for they are symbols of our past."
Murugavelan has been widely recognized for this book. A number of reviews of the book have been published. Vasanth TV had done a documentary based on this work and its called - Mann Pesum Sarithiram. Ananda Vikatan had honoured the author by giving the best novel award.
The author has burnt mid night oil to do this book and must have built a huge network of contacts by the time the book had been done fully. The books takes us through the route taken by Kovalan, Kannagi and Koundi Adigal. An Innova, a bus, a jeep and a 407 have been used by the characters in the story for the purpose of commuting. The thought process of the multi national executive Narasimhan is portrayed in an interesting way. He comes across as a very street smart cum analytical individual.
The characters found in the book are quite lively. Both the comrades Navin and Kannan are wedded to ideology. They seem to be viewing things and incidents from an ideological perspective. The research scholar Srikumar Neminathan will enthrall the readers and they will surely find the character Mullai really interesting.
Its the initiative of Mullai that makes many things happen in the story. The company JK appears to be the spoil sport for locals like the politician Ayya or his stone loving acolyte Krishnaswamy Gounder. The mistress of the gem stone lover kind of tries to add a twist to the narrative. The kidnapping of Srikumar Neminathan adds spice to the story.
Murugavelan added further, " I saw some semi precious stones at a workshop near Kangeyam. I studied a lot about the international diamond trade and rebel groups like the UNITA. Blood Diamonds have been all around the world. I travelled at my own behest. It was an opportunity to see some of the ancient trade routes that were used by Romans. Vellakovil, Kangeyam and the areas around Sivanmalai must have had a brisk gem trade those days. "
The author has shown the old epic in a new perspective. The narration is lucid. He has made it racy throughout the book. Its a fact that India and particularly the western ghats happens to be home to gem deposits. The comrades in the book feel that the rights of the forest dwellers are compromised by sending them out of the forests. They also feel that the gem companies want to ' use ' the forest and therefore want the tribal people out of the place. In any case its a difficult predicament for everyone because ' everyone ' is concerned either about their rights or money.
The story of the scintillating gems tries to capture the imagination of the people in an innovative manner. It talks of the difficult issues that may have existed during the active period of the gem trade in the distant past and the difficulties that may arise just in case large scale gem mining takes place now in the western ghats region. The fears, conflicts, monies involved, rights of people are touched upon in the eventuality of it happening . Its here the chaste Kannagi comes in as ideology in order to who seek and speak for justice. The world is seen through the anklets that were worn by both - the Queen of Madurai, Kopperundevi and the righteous Kannagi.
Mrugavelan was keen to add some more inputs , " It can be made into a good movie provided things fall in place properly. The story of Kovalan and Kannagi has been part of our lore and will be so for eternity." Authors like Murugavelan are adding to the literary flavor of Coimbatore.