Listening to the Alathur Brothers singing Tyagaraja’s Sama raga kriti, ‘Santhamu leka’, inevitably brings to mind Seithi , a short story by T. Janakiraman (ThiJa), and the character of the nagaswaram player who renders the kriti to prove the superiority of Carnatic music to his son, who thinks nothing can match the charm of film music. But the son realises the richness of classical music when he sees a group of foreign musicians enjoying his father’s performance.
Anyone reading the story again and again for its exalted treatment of music will be surprised to be told by writer Kadarkarai Mathavilasa Ankatham in his essay that it was written like a screenplay. A great admirer of ThiJa’s writings and among the contributors to Janakiramam , a book of essays published on the occasion of ThiJa’s centenary, Kadarkarai argues, however, that there was no need for the story to have a foreigner’s appreciation bring home the greatness of Carnatic music.
But he adds that “nobody can match ThiJa when it comes to enriching stories with enthralling discourses on the intricacies of music. A storytelling tradition where classical music played a major role seems to be lost now.”
As many as 102 tribute pieces analysing Janakiraman’s works through the prism of all isms have been compiled by Professor Kalyanaraman as a ready reference for his writings. Though voluminous at 1,031 pages, the collection, published by Kalachuvadu, will rekindle interest in ThiJa’s works.
Few writers have captured the spiritual and artistic milieu of the Thanjavur district as ThiJa did, but his admirers will agree that there was a dichotomy between his deep admiration for tradition and his anger over the practices that placed curbs on women and the less privileged in the name of tradition.
Unlike recent times, when the river Cauvery is caught in conflict and its bounty has become erratic, its waters once brought prosperity to Thanjavur. The beauty of the ancient temples and lush-green villages of this region were captured by ThiJa’s prose, which flows like the Cauvery of yore and delves deep into the minds of his characters as well as into society.
Kalyanaraman, who has penned a huge essay (it runs to 62 pages) in the collection and whose doctoral thesis was on ThiJa’s novels, says the writer abhorred hypocrisy. In his long introduction to the piece, he lists the criticisms against ThiJa, including that of focussing too much on sexual desire, and defends his works and characters.
“A creative person cannot be measured by the dominant contemporary ideologies, and that is what I have tried to drive home in my introduction,” says Kalyanaraman. “ThiJa and Periyar had many things in common, especially their view on women’s rights.”
Thi Janakiraman anchoring a programmer at AIR
His views are echoed by advocate Arulmozhi, a Dravidian ideologue. “It’s surprising that ThiJja wrote against injustice in society, particularly against women. ThiJa’s first novel, Amirtham , which he wrote at the age of 26, bears testimony to the fact that he refused to change his opinion and writings even though he was aware that his own Brahmin community would be excoriated because of his plots and characterisation.”
There is also a detailed interview with Gnana Rajasekaran, who made ThiJa’s popular novel Mohamul into a movie. He recalls the arduous task of making the film, that began in 1982, when the writer was alive. Many of ThiJa’s admirers think the film failed because it could not capture the soul of the novel. The filmmaker, however, argues that the transition from book to screen was seamless. “Well-known writers like Ashokamitran, Kasturi Rangan, Indira Parthasarathy, Chitti and Vasanthi also felt that. Some of them knew ThiJa closely and their appreciation is a great recognition for me,” says Rajasekaran.
V.S. Anikumar, who has written a detailed review of Mohamul in Malayalam, compares it with the works of Thagazhi Sivasankara Pillai, M.T. Vasudevan Nair. C. Radhakrishnan, and S.K. Pottekaatt. “What should be in a great novel are not just the incidents. What differentiates Mohamul is the description of the incidents. It makes one experience the tragedies of life,” he says.
Writer Stalin Rajangam, analysing Nalapakam , the only novel of ThiJa that deals with contemporary politics, has made sharp observations in his essay on the evolution of Tamil Nadu politics and the way it plays out. “It has brought to the centre stage the politics of untouchability. But it is not exactly the politics of the untouchables, but rather the politics in others moving towards them,” he writes.
