Registered with the Registrar of Newspapers for India under R.N.I 53640/91
Vol. XXVIII No. 5, June 16-30, 2018
Subramania Bharati in British and French India by J.B.P. More, Palaniappa Brothers. Price Rs. 410.
French Pondicherry was the most productive place for Bharati’s literary and revolutionary creations, asserts the author of a new book on Bharati, Prof. J.B.P. More. “If he had not penned Kuyil Paatu, Panchali Sabhadam and Kannan Paatu in Pondicherry, he would never have become the Mahakavi,” he says. The focus of the author, is however, Bharati’s political and social views. It is because of the influence exerted by French values in his Pondicherry days that he rose above narrow nationalism to emerge as a genuine Indian Tamil patriot.
The seven chapters in the book cover Bharati’s life, his patriotism, spirituality and philosophy in an elaborate narrative. The book itself is an expansion of his booklet in French for the Franco-Thamizh Cultural Association in Paris, which was released in the presence of Mannar Mannan, son of Bharatidasan, at Puthuvai Thamizh Sangam.
The author states that he had relied heavily on the works of Bharati scholars like Seeni Viswanathan, Ra.Aa. Padmanabhan, P. Thooran and Pe.Su. Mani, apart from the books of Chellamma Bharati, Thangammal and Sakuntala, as well as, S. Vijaya Bharati, grand-daughter. Prof. More acknowledges the help of Sengamala Thayar, Director of Bharati Memorial Centre, Pondicherry, in locating right material.
Within the short span of 39 years that he lived (1882-1921), Bharati’s contribution to the country was enormous, as this was a crucial period in modern Indian and South Indian history. He evolved into a swadeshi nationalist and Tamil patriot. According to the author, the body of works Bharati achieved in Pondicherry was much more than what he contributed during his stay in Thamizhnadu.
Poems by Bharati astonished everyone, including poets and vidwans and the Ettayapuram Raja conferred on him the title of ‘Bharati’ in 1893 when he was hardly 12 years old! He married Chellammal when he was just 15. In the meanwhile, his father Chinnasamy Iyer lost heavily in his business and in 1898 passed away.
Bharati’s foray into writing about national politics began when G. Subramania Iyer started Swadesamitran. Bharati was given his chance when he moved from Madurai where he was teaching, to Madras. With his poem Vangamai Vaazhiyave (Long live Bengal) at a meeting on the Marina, he became a staunch votary of Indian nationalism. Bharati’s fiery writings caught the imagination of Tamil readers. During his earlier years, Bharati had been strongly influenced by Bankim Chandra and Tilak.
In Madras, V.O. Chidambaram met Bharati and they became friends. VOC had the encouragement of Bharati and G. Subramania Iyer in founding the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company. Bharati called Chidambaram ‘Desa Simham,’ considering him as a great leader of the nation. “After seeing Chidambaram in prison and after coming to know of Srinivasa Iyengar’s arrest, Bharati feared the Government might arrest him at any time. So when Srinivasachari advised him to go to Pondicherry, Bharati did not hesitate a moment,” writes the author, revealing the circumstances that forced Bharati to move to Pondicherry.
Not knowing anything other than writing, Bharati faced a tough time in Pondicherry. However, he familiarised himself with French culture and civilisation. He not only learnt French but also read revolutionary writers and philosophers. The French slogan ‘Liberty, Equality Fraternity’ appeared on the title of the journal India.
“Right from the beginning,” writes More, “he started singing the praise of the French and their high values and ideals.” Srinivasachari, Bharati and his associates in Pondicherry had decided to project Aravinda Ghose as the leader of the nationalists. Bharati developed contacts with revolutionaries and radicals and gave prominence to them in his paper. The presence of Bharati and his friends in Pondicherry pulled Aravinda Ghose from turbulent Calcutta to peaceful Pondicherry, and thus Pondicherry became the stronghold of nationalists, according to More.
There was strict watch of nationalists in Pondicherry. “Bharati deliberately cultivated the friendship of some French politicians,” says the author. And he continued to hail the French and the French revolution and portrayed France as the mother of democracy and freedom.
When patriotic and political activities had almost ceased, he ibstead of turning to religion and spirituality, turned to social reform and literature. Bharati believed that the caste system in India would be swept aside. “He even thought that caste as expounded in Gita probably existed in the past and had deteriorated into a caste system determined by parentage.” He felt that men cannot be equal on the basis of character and work. Bharati did not think that equality and competition were compatible values.
He affirmed this in his philosophical work Gnanaratham, says More. He also states that Bharati was very harsh at times towards the proponents of the Aryan-Dravidian theory.
This book is a veritable treasure of incidents from the colonial past of British India and French India, while tracing the genesis of the nationalistic sentiments of Subramania Bharati. What makes it interesting reading are these incidents, several nuggets, and numerous assertions.
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