Chennai: The legacy of poet Subramania Bharathi is being undermined by a chauvinistic ecosystem that prevails in Tamil Nadu and which seeks to erase his contributions through active indifference and passive hostility, said Governor R N Ravi
Speaking at the felicitation of Padma Shri awardee Seeni Viswanathan, who compiled the works of Subramania Bharathi, the governor said he saw little prominence given to the poet when he came to Tamil Nadu and wanted to change it. The first move was to rechristen the darbar hall in Raj Bhavan after Bharathi, said the governor.
The ecosystem in Tamil Nadu feels insecure with Bharathi and has realised that it cannot coexist with the poet, seeing him as a threat, the governor said. “Mahakavi Bharathiar lives in the hearts of the people,” he said, adding that the poet envisioned an inclusive Bharat, spoke of harmony between Kashi and Kanchi (Kancheepuram), and championed the Vedas, all ideas that contradict the divisive narrative promoted by the same ecosystem. The governor said he was unsuccessful in his attempt to establish a chair for Bharathi in a state university.
“Unfortunately, here we have an ecosystem that feels insecure about talking about Bharathiar because Bharathiar talked about Bharat. Here we have an ecosystem which does not believe in Bharath as a nation,” he said. The Governor went on to add that Bharathi praised the Vedas, but here they hate the Vedas. He said the establishment could not spread Bharathi’s legacy and that it was for society to do it.