K. Pazhanisamy was a

Tamil language Tamil (; ' , ) is a Dravidian language natively spoken by the Tamil people of South Asia. Tamil is an official language of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, the sovereign nations of Sri Lanka and Singapore, and the Indian territory of Pudu ...

writer,

Marxist Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...

thinker, literary critic and scholar from

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

, India, who wrote under the pen name Kovai Gnani. He introduced the Marxist ideology in

Tamil literature Tamil literature has a rich and long literary tradition spanning more than two thousand years. The oldest extant works show signs of maturity indicating an even longer period of evolution. Contributors to the Tamil literature are mainly from T ...

, in the early 1990s, and authored 28 books on literary criticism, five collections of essays, three collections of poetry, eleven anthologies and edited many books. He received several awards including Tamil Nadu government's best book award and Lifetime Achievement Award by

The Tamil Literary Garden The Tamil Literary Garden, is a Canadian literary organization and charity founded in 2001. The focus of this organization is on supporting translations of Tamil literature, sponsoring lecture series, commissioning publications, launching books ...

Biography

Pazhanisamy was born in 1935, in Somannur in

Coimbatore Coimbatore, also spelt as Koyamputhur (), sometimes shortened as Kovai (), is one of the major metropolitan cities in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyyal River and surrounded by the Western Ghats. Coimbato ...

, of Tamil Nadu, one of the eight children of Krishnaswamy and Mariammal. He graduated in

from

Annamalai University , logo = CampusmapofAU.jpg , image = Annamalai University logo.png , image_size = 225px , motto = "With Courage and Faith" , established = , type ...

and worked as a Tamil teacher in a school in Coimbatore for 30 years. In 1988, at the age of 55, he lost his sight due to

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...

, but that did not stop his quest for reading and writing. As a Marxist thinker, or as a person moved towards Tamil nationalism, he did not associate with any political party or movement in India. He approached Marxism only as a philosophy. Gnani opposed classical Marxism, which approached culture only economically, and argued for the need for a Marxism suitable for India (''Mannukketra Marxism'') and explained it in his writings and speeches. He was the mentor for many modern Tamil writers and poets. His contact with eminent Tamil scholars and his self-study, which continued for over 50 years, gave him an in-depth knowledge of ancient and modern Tamil literature. His involvement in Marxism and Tamil made him a critic of Tamil literature and contemporary Tamil society. He who made a significant role in founding the poetry movement ''Vaanampaadi'', which focuses discovering new poets, with writers like

Sirpi Balasubramaniam Sirpi Balasubramaniam (born 29 July 1936) is a Tamil poet, critic, scholar and professor from Tamil Nadu, India. Biography Balasubramaniam was born in Aaththupollachi village in Pollachi Coimbatore District. He obtained his MA from Annamalai Un ...

, Mehta and Bhuviyarash. As part of the Little Magazine Movement, he edited Tamil language little magazines like ''Puthia Thalaimurai'', '' Vanampadihe'' and ran magazines like ''Marxia Ayvithazh'', ''Parimanam'' and ''Nigazh''. His books are being used as a subject of study in the Tamil departments of various universities in India.

Personal life and death

Gnani and his wife Indrani had two sons. He died on 20 July 2020 at Coimbatore.

Partial bibliography

* *''Puthiya Thalamurai'' (Meaning: Generation) *''Marxiyam Periyariam'' (Meaning: Marxism and Periyarism) *''Marxiamum Tamil Ilakkiyamum'' (Meaning: Marxism and Tamil Literature) *''Tamilil Naveenathuvam Pinnaveenathuvam'' (Meaning: Modernism and Postmodernism in Tamil) *''Tamil Ilakkiyam Indrum Iniyum'' (Meaning:bTamil Literature: Today and Hereafter) *''Kadavul Yen Innum Saagavillai?'' (Meaning: Why Isn't God Dead Yet?) *''Kallum Mullum Kavithaigalum'' (Meaning: Stones, Thorns and Poetry) *''Marxiya Azhakiyal'' (Meaning: Marxist aesthetics)

Awards and honors

*Tamil Nadu government's best book award 2006 (Marxiyam Periyariam) *Pudumaipithan Vilakku Viruthu 1998 *Parithimaar Kalaignar Award for the best Tamil scholar, by the SRM University *'Hindu Tamil Disai' Achievement Award 2019 *Lifetime Achievement Award (Iyal award) 2009 by

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gnani, Kovai 1935 births 2020 deaths Marxist theorists Indian Marxist writers Indian Marxists Indian male writers 20th-century Indian essayists Poets from Tamil Nadu Tamil writers Annamalai University alumni Indian Tamil people 20th-century Indian poets Indian literary critics People from Coimbatore district