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Recasting the many facets of Subramania Bharati- poet, activist and freedom fighter
Statues of the Tamil poet, nationalist and freedom-fighter Subramania Bharati (1882-1921), or Bharatiyar as he is known to Tamils, have been erected in many parts of India as well as abroad. Barring a couple, most of these statues are stereotypical, particularly...
Better Tamil Nadu
Tamil medium student is now post-doctoral researcher in UK
A student hailing from a below poverty line family in Vayaloor near Kalpakkam studied in a Tamil medium school and went on to complete his Phd in Physics and later joined the prestigious Bangor University in Wales, England as a Post Doctoral Research Officer. At 34 years of age, E Jayaprashath...
This village Tamil medium school run by bank employees is special
It is a Tamil medium school with a difference. Functioning in Kurichi village 7 km from Pattukottai, the school, run by the Indian Bank Employees Association Trust does not torture the students with homework, and neither does it terrorise them with rank cards. Even before it was prohibited by...
Last week he became the first doctor from his village in Tamil Nadu
At the recent Madras Medical College convocation, R Selvapandi became the first doctor from Maravaikkudi village in Ramanathapuram district of Tamil Nadu. Among the Ramanathapuram Elite School students who made good is R Selvapandi. Born in a Scheduled Caste family, Selvapandi did well in...
First generation techie pulls her family out of financial misery
The perseverance and determination of this Tamil Nadu woman, a first-generation graduate, Balasundari, a native of Kovilpatti town in southern Tamil Nadu has transformed her family's fortunes overnight. The daughter of an employee of a provisions store, Balasundari broke through the barriers of...
Ramanathapuram high achiever becomes doctor
D Ilakkiya, who studied at the Elite School initiated by former Ramanathapuram collector K Nandakumar, is now a doctor after scoring 100% in three subjects in Class 12. Elite school is a special government school for high performers in Ramanathapuram. Ilakkiya’s father Dhakshinamoorthy runs a...
Opinion
‘Tamil Nadu economy: Binging on borrowing’
The current DMK government in Tamil Nadu had severely criticised the previous AIADMK government over the ballooning of the state's debt over the years. When it came to power after a decade in the Opposition, the DMK government released a White Paper on State finances...
How the Nayan wedding event holds a mirror to our society
Tamil weddings are often chaotic family affairs but the Vignesh Shivan, Nayan wedding was a carefully orchestrated and controlled media event where the media wasn’t invited. Top stars were in attendance. From Rajinikanth through Shah Rukh Khan and Mani Ratnam, all the...
Did Tamil Rajamouli movie RRR look like a gay flick to you?
It didn’t for me! But, let’s start from the beginning, shall we? Pride month is here, and apparently the Tamil Rajamouli movie, RRR has captured the attention of the American audience! Yes, in a very “pride-like” fashion! It seems the chemistry between the two male...
Mathi Memes
Mathi Memes: He can’t act, he can’t dance. Yet Ajith’s Valimai is a smash hit
Actress Khushbu was referring to the reception to Ajith's film Valimai. In what seemed like a mix of admiration and envy, she tweeted in Tamil: “Only you [Ajith Kumar] draw such crowds.” On Wednesday (Feb 24) evening, at a theatre in Thoothukudi, there was a large...
Editor’s Pick
Pearl City Massacre: Lest we forget
A dhoti-clad man is lying on the road and his body is barely moving. Policemen in riotgear are shuffling around, shooing away people. Another man standing next to the body with blood streaming down his face is crying. He is pleading with the person taking the video that he should get him out of...
After Amby, Contessa to come back in Tamilnadu?
Hindustan Motors may well be considering reviving the Contessa through its Tamilnadu plant, given that the company recently trademarked the Contessa nameplate. When the global car community talks about a muscle car, minds wander around American muscle cars. The iconic Ford Mustang, the beastly...
Bringing Bengaluru Metro to Tamil Nadu a win-win for both states
In a fine gesture of inter-state cooperation, Tamil Nadu and the Karnataka government are set to work together to extend the Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation line up to Hosur which is 8.8 kilometres into the political border of Tamil Nadu. A proposal sent by the Krishnagiri MP Dr A Chellakumar...
G Square, Annamalai: Reality check on plot approval
Last week in a press conference, BJP state president had alleged that the group of property developer firms, G Square, has been able to get CMDA plot approval within eight days. He also said it takes 200 days for others to get their plot approval typically. Here’s a reality check from the...
Vikram 1.0 was new, novel. Will 2.0 be a tired cliché?
Vikram was the coolest Tamil movie of the 1980s. We knew India made rockets that went into space. But the rocket in Vikram could be used to attack other countries. It could even carry a nuclear weapon. Really? India in the mid-1980s made missiles? India had nuclear weapons? Cool! The Buddha...
Politics
O Panneerselvam: How No 2 never becomes No 1 in kazhagams
The predicament of O Panneerselvam seems to be a pattern in the Dravidian parties. Nedunchezhiyan was permanently fixed at the second spot be it the party (DMK or AIADMK) or the government hierarchy and could never reach the top spot. He...
Contract jobs, a non-political view
Instead of new recruitment as Tamilnadu government employees, governments have been using contract workers for a long time. From life saving professions to nurses to others, contract workers are being used extensively by government and are paid...
EPS dominates but OPS has legal grip over AIADMK party
What cannot be cured, must be endured, especially in the AIADMK party. This is the moral of the story for the broken and bruised AIADMK camp, divided sharply between the Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) and O Panneerselvam (OPS) groups. Today's...
AIADMK heads for another split; die cast for formation of AIADMK (EPS) and AIADMK (OPS)
The AIADMK is heading for yet another split as rival groups led by former chief ministers Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) and O Paneerselvam (OPS) jockeying for power ahead of the party's general council meeting scheduled for June 23. Palaniswami...
How Tamil news media blacks out Arappor: Jayaram Venkatesan
Arappor Iyakkam convenor Jayaram Venkatesan has been campaigning against corruption fleshing out prima facie evidence of wrongdoing by officials and ministers. Arappor’s spurs were in the Anna Hazare movement but in the last five years has set a record of memorable...
Culture
Therukoothu: Method acting is the norm in ancient folk art
Therukoothu is alive and kicking -- at least in some places during the Tamil months of Aani and Aadi. Therukoothu themes are often the smaller stories of the Mahabharatha, the nuggets that are spicy and carry a message. Therukoothu is typically...
How Charaka’s Ayurveda replaced faith-based elements with reason
Caraka, the extraordinary physician and the author of Caraka Samhita, an ancient treatise of Ayurveda, is believed to have lived during the time of the Kushan empire that flourished in today’s north India between 200 BC and AD100. Being one of...
Droupadi Murmu: The Dravidian connect to Odisha tribes
Droupadi Murmu, who is from the Santhal tribe in the Mayurbhanj district of Odisha, is the presidential candidate of the BJP. Her candidature has facilitated Biju Janata Dal support which is crucial for the BJP to get 50% of the electoral...
Subramaniya Bharathi: Book chronicles remarkable, true stories
Subramaniya Bharathi lived a remarkable life. His life was full of interesting events and anecdotes. Many hear these stories made popular by word of mouth and ask me if the story they had heard was true. I have often tried to verify the...
Recasting the many facets of Subramania Bharati- poet, activist and freedom fighter
Statues of the Tamil poet, nationalist and freedom-fighter Subramania Bharati (1882-1921), or Bharatiyar as he is known to Tamils, have been erected in many parts of India as well as abroad. Barring a couple, most of these statues are stereotypical, particularly...
Food
Organic certification: Much of the produce is uncertified
Organic produce is often marketed as non-toxic in Chennai but without any certification. Sales depends on trust created by word of mouth. Below is the second part of (read first part here) of the interview with Arogyam Organic Foods managing...
Ghost kitchen in Tamil Nadu: To stay or will go soon?
The spread of the ghost kitchen in Tamil Nadu has transformed the dining experience from eating in restaurants to enjoying cuisines delivered through food aggregators by delivery modes (i.e. outside a restaurant). This has changed eating habits...
Plant-based meat: Just a pricey lifestyle choice?
Plant-based meats refer to food products that mimic animal meat products. The eating experience and taste are equivalent to consuming meat. They appear like meat too. They may also be called “fake” meats, “meat alternatives,” or “vegan meats.” A...
Traditional rice varieties Tamil Nadu: In tune with the times
The traditional rice varieties of Tamil Nadu are seeing a renewal in interest (click here and here for more on this). This article summarizes the scientific aspects. Rice is India’s pre-eminent crop and is the staple food of the people of...
Nayan wedding trail: Is jackfruit biryani healthier?
Among the newsmakers in the Nayan-Shivan wedding was Jackfruit Biryani that was served to guests. This mock-meat dish may have helped guests eat a biryani with the texture of meat but without actually eating meat. But how healthy is jackfruit biryani? Can biryani...
Civic Issues
Expert panel for flood in Chennai wanted transparency, but . . .
Years before the DMK government gave the former bureaucrat V Thiruppugazh the job of studying the disastrous 2021 flood in Chennai and suggesting permanent remedies, he had undertaken a study of best practices in the wake of the 2015 flood in the city on behalf of...
Chennai Metro to be disabled-friendly, but what about MTC?
It is a running battle between disability rights activists and government establishments to get officials to obey the law. Although it is six years since the new law on rights of the disabled was passed, the situation on the ground is far from improved, whether in...
Environment
India’s poor performance holds lessons for Chennai environment
The precipitous slide in India’s ranking on the Environmental Performance Index this year to rock bottom at 180 has triggered anger and denial by the Union government but it can provide lessons for Chennai environment protection. “Unfounded assumptions”, “surmises”...
Can Tamil Nadu coast survive deadly wet bulb temperature?
The buzz around wet bulb temperature has reached the Coromandel coast with cyclone Asani turning out to be only a brief interlude. The heat wave that has swept many parts of India in recent days, surpassing previously recorded peaks in April and May of 2010, has...
Sports
Cricketer Dinesh Karthik: A dazzling comeback
Cricketer Dinesh Karthik has made a dazzling comeback after being written-off as a serious contender in international cricket. On the verge of being a had-been, Dinesh soldiered on, playing in Madurai local cricket, and taking a shot at commentating. But then he...
Sai Kishore IPL 2022: Super king ignored by Dhoni process
R Sai Kishore, a familiar name in Tamil Nadu and Indian domestic circuit, has just lifted the IPL 2022 title with Gujarat Titans. A proper underrated player in an underrated team. In the four games he played this season, he took six wickets with a good economy rate...
Read in : தமிழ்