P. R. Shanmugam, an octogenarian residing alongside College Road in the city, becomes an eloquent narrator of history when someone asks him about Tirupur Kumaran, an Indian revolutionary who lost his life while participating in the Indian Independence movement after been assaulted by the police.
Mr. Shanmugam is the foster son of Tirupur Kumaran and his wife Ramaiammal.
He is actually the son of Meenakshiammal, the sister of Ramaiammal, and was later adopted by Ramaiammal when he lost his biological parents.
Though born a year after Tirupur Kumaran was killed due to the injuries sustained during the freedom struggle, Mr. Shanmugam remembers vividly the family history gathered through the descriptions given by his foster mother.
“Actually, family members were against Kumaran taking part in the freedom struggle. They feared that engaging in any fight with the British could threaten his life,” Mr. Shanmugam told The Hindu .
He also recollected his foster mother telling about how her husband’s employers (Kumaran worked in a unit that sold cotton) were approached by some of the relatives to discourage him from plunging into the Independence movement.
Despite the opposition, Kumaran took part in the struggle, he added.
Interestingly, Mr. Shanmugam himself did not take part in the freedom movement as he was the only one to earn for the family.
“I was a young boy at that time and also had to work to run the family comprising myself, foster mother and grandmother,” he said.
“However, I am proud of my foster parent, since he laid down his life for the country despite coming from a tiny town like Tirupur”.
