In addition, he changed his outward appearance. This broadened his outlook and he learned Sanskrit, Hindi and English. He lost his father at the age of sixteen, but before that when he was 15, he married Chellamma who was seven years old.ĭuring his stay in Varanasi, Bharathi was exposed to Hindu spirituality and nationalism. Around the age of 11, he was conferred the title of "Bharathi", the one blessed by Saraswati, the goddess of learning by the Raja of Ettayapuram seeing his excellence in poetry. A proficient linguist, he was well-versed in Sanskrit, Hindi, Telugu, English, French and had a smattering of Arabic. Bharathi lost his mother at the age of five and was brought up by his father who wanted him to learn English, excel in arithmetic, and become an engineer. From a very young age, he was musically and poetically inclined. Subramania, as he was named, went to the M.D.T. He wrote many books and poems on how Tamil is beautiful in nature.īharathi was born on 11 December 1882 in the village of Ettayapuram, to Chinnaswami Subramania Iyer and Lakshmi Ammal. The songs and poems composed by Bharathi are very often used in Tamil cinema and have become staples in the literary and musical repertoire of Tamil artistes throughout the world. He covered political, social and spiritual themes. Although it is said that he was proficient in around 14, including 3 non-Indian foreign languages. His influence on Tamil literature is phenomenal. In 1908, an arrest warrant was issued against Bharathi by the government of British India caused him to move to Pondicherry where he lived until 1918. īorn in Ettayapuram of Tirunelveli district (present-day Thoothukudi) in 1882, Bharathi had his early education in Tirunelveli and Varanasi and worked as a journalist with many newspapers, including The Hindu, Bala Bharata, Vijaya, Chakravarthini, the Swadesamitran and India. He was also in solidarity with Dalits and Muslims. He fought for the emancipation of women, against child marriage, stood for reforming Brahminism and religion. His numerous works included fiery songs kindling patriotism during the Indian Independence movement. Popularly known as "Mahakavi Bharathi" ("Great Poet Bharathi"), he was a pioneer of modern Tamil poetry and is considered one of the greatest Tamil literary figures of all time. Subramania Bharathi (11 December 1882 – 11 September 1921), was a Tamil writer, poet, journalist, Indian independence activist, social reformer and polyglot. Journalist, poet, writer, teacher, patriot, freedom fighter Bharathi, Subbaiah, Sakthi Dasan, Mahakavi, Mundasu Kavignar, Veera Kavi, Selly Dasan