Kannadasan
| "Kaviarasu" Kannadasan | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | A. L. Muthiah 24 June 1927 Sirukoodalpatti, Tamil Nadu, India |
| Died | 17 October 1981 (aged 54) Chicago, Illinois, United States |
| Pen name | Karaimuthu Pulavar, Vanangamudi, Kamakappriya, Parvathi Nathan, Arokkiya Saamy |
| Occupation | Poet, novelist, lyricist, politician, film producer, literary editor |
| Notable works | Arthamulla Indumadham |
| Notable awards |
National Film Award for Best Lyrics 1961 Kuzhanthaikkaga Sahitya Akademi Award 1980 Cheraman Kadali |
| Children | 15 |
Kannadasan (24 June 1927 – 17 October 1981) was a Tamil poet and lyricist, heralded as one of the greatest and most important writers in the Tamil language. Frequently called Kaviarasu (King of Poets), Kannadasan was most familiar for his song lyrics in Tamil films and contributed around 5000 film lyrics apart from 6000 poems and 232 books, including novels, epics, plays, essays, his most popular being the 10-part religious essay on Hinduism, Arthamulla Indhumatham (Meaningful Hindu Religion). He won the Sahitya Akademi Award for his novel Cheraman Kadali in the year 1980 and was the first to receive the National Film Award for Best Lyrics, given in 1969 for the film Kuzhanthaikkaga.
Kannadasan worked in Thiraioli, a cine magazine run by 'Papa' Rama.Thiyagarajan in Rayavaram. Pudukkottai Distt and in Chennai. He also worked for "Thirumagal" magazine in Ramachandrapuram, Pudukkottai Distt. M. Karunanidhi conferred the title Kavingar to Kannadasan in a public meeting held at Pollachi in 1949.
Muthiah was a staunch atheist and a follower of the Dravidian atheistic movement. He had a great love for the Tamil language and culture, and excelled in Tamil literature, both prose and poetry. He read the Thiruppavai of Andal, and was amazed at its mystic poetry, which was to have a deep and lasting impact on him. After a lot of introspection, he decided to convert back to Hinduism. He renamed himself as Kannadasan, meaning the servant of Lord Krishna (In Tamil Kannan means Krishna, and in Sanskrit, Dasa means servant). There is another train of thought that the kanna in his adopted name doesn't refer to the Hindu God, but to Jalagandapuram Kannan, his mentor. He dug deep into understanding Hinduism, and wrote his series of books on Hinduism titled Arthamulla Indhu Matham.
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