A 7.5-foot-tall bronze statue of Subramania Bharathiyar will be installed at the Tamil Department at Madurai Kamaraj University to commemorate the national poet’s 100th death anniversary. It is designed and cast by G. Chandrasekaran, former Principal of Government College of Fine Arts.
Mr. Chandraskearan said in making the statue he had made a departure from stereotypical image of Bharathi, an angry poet. “We have also actors such as Sivaji Ganesan, S.V. Subbaiah and S.V. Sahasranamam, who have donned the role, keeping their audience in mind. But I have imagined a Bharathi, who is in deep thought and rendering a soliloquy, reiterating his commitment that poetry is nothing but serving the nation,” he explained.
Former IAS officer G. Balachandran has sponsored the statue. Mr. Chandrasekaran said the way Bharathi “was holding the stick in his hand looks natural and does not create an image that he is ready for a fight.”
