Vairamuthu Ramasamy (born 13 July 1953) is an Indian

lyricist A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's incom ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

, and

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others asp ...

working in the

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

film industry The film industry or motion picture industry comprises the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking, i.e., film production companies, film studios, cinematography, animation, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, p ...

. He is a prominent figure in the

literary world. A master's graduate from the

Pachaiyappa's College Pachaiyappa's College is one of the oldest educational institutions in Chennai, in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. In addition, it is the first sole Indian college in Madras Presidency. History Pachaiyappa's College, Chennai is the resul ...

in Chennai, he first worked as a translator, while also being a published poet. He entered the Tamil film industry in the year 1980, with the film ''

Nizhalgal ''Nizhalgal'' () is a 1980 Indian Tamil-language drama film co-written and directed by Bharathiraja. The film stars primarily newcomers such as S. Rajasekar (credited as Rajasekaran), Raadhu (credited as Rohini), Ravi, Chandrasekhar and Suv ...

'', an

Ilaiyaraaja Ilaiyaraaja (born R. Gnanathesikan, 3 June 1943) is an Indian musician, composer, arranger, conductor, orchestrator, instrumentalist, lyricist and singer, popular for his works in Indian Cinema, prominently in Tamil films. Reputed to be one of ...

musical, directed by

Bharathiraja Bharathiraja (born 17 July 1941) is an Indian film director and actor who works mainly in the Tamil film industry. Making his debut in 1977 with ''16 Vayathinile'', he is known for realistic and sensitive portrayals of rural life in his films. ...

. During the course of his 40-year film career, he has written over 7,500 songs and poems which have won him seven National Awards, the most for any Indian lyricist. He has also been honored with a

Padma Shri Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...

, a

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...

and a

Sahitya Akademi Award The Sahitya Akademi Award is a literary honour in India, which the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, annually confers on writers of the most outstanding books of literary merit published in any of the 22 languages of the ...

, for his abundant literary output.

Early life

Vairamuthu was born on July 13, 1953, to Ramasamy and his wife Angammal, who were agriculturalists based in the village of Mettoor, in the district of

Theni Theni is a valley town situated in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu at the foothills of Western Ghats. It is the headquarters of the Theni district, located in a distance of 70km from Madurai. It is known for the large-scale trading of garlic, c ...

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 ...

. In 1957, his family was forced to move to Vadugapatti, another village in the Theni district, due to the construction of

Vaigai Dam The Vaigai Dam is built across the Vaigai River near Andipatti, in the Theni district of Tamil Nadu, southern India. Near the dam, the Government of Tamil Nadu has constructed an Agricultural Research Station for researching the growing of ...

across the river

Vaigai The Vaigai is a river in the Tamil Nadu state of southern India; it passes through the towns of Theni, Dindigul and Madurai. It originates in Varusanadu Hills, the Periyar Plateau of the Western Ghats range, and flows northeast through the ...

, which led to evacuation of 14 villages (including Mettur). In his new surroundings, he also took up agriculture in addition to his academics. From a very young age, Vairamuthu was drawn towards the language and literature of Tamil. The Dravidian movement in Tamil Nadu during the 1960s, made a significant impression on his youth and he was inspired by several prominent individuals associated with language, such as Periyar E. V. Ramasamy, 'Perarignar' Annadurai, Kalaignar Mu. Karunanidhi,

Subramania Bharathi C. Subramania Bharathi Birth name: C. Subramaniyan, the person's given name: Subramaniyan, father's given name: Chinnaswami. (C. Subramaniyan by the prevalent patronymic initials as prefix naming system in Tamil Nadu and it is Subramaniyan C ...

Bharathidasan Bharathidasan Birth name: K. Subburathinam, the person's given name: Subburathinam, father's given name: Kanagasabai. (K. Subburathinam by the prevalent patronymic initials as prefix naming system in Tamil Nadu and it is Subburathinam Kanag ...

and

Kannadasan Kannadasan (; 24 June 1927 – 17 October 1981) was an Indian philosopher, poet, film song lyricist, producer, actor, script-writer, editor, philanthropist, and is heralded as one of the greatest and most important lyricists in India. Freq ...

. He began writing poems from the age of ten and by his early teens, he was noted as a prominent orator and poet in his school. At the age of fourteen, he wrote a group of ''venba'' poems, having been inspired by

Thiruvalluvar Thiruvalluvar (Tamil: திருவள்ளுவர்), commonly known as Valluvar, was a celebrated Tamil poet and philosopher. He is best known as the author of the ''Tirukkuṟaḷ'', a collection of couplets on ethics, political and ...

’s ''

Tirukkuṛaḷ The ''Tirukkuṟaḷ'' ( ta, திருக்குறள், lit=sacred verses), or shortly the ''Kural'' ( ta, குறள்), is a classic Tamil language text consisting of 1,330 short couplets, or kurals, of seven words each. The tex ...

''.

Education and early career

During the stint of his under-graduation at

Pachaiyappa’s College Pachaiyappa's College is one of the oldest educational institutions in Chennai, in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. In addition, it is the first sole Indian college in Madras Presidency. History Pachaiyappa's College, Chennai is the resul ...

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

, he was acclaimed as a speaker and poet. In his sophomore year, he published his first anthology of poems, titled ''Vaigarai Megangal'' ('Clouds at Dawn'), at the age of nineteen. The book was prescribed as part of the curriculum in the Women's Christian College, giving Vairamuthu the distinction of being a writer whose work was part of a syllabus, while he was still a student. He completed a 2 year Master's program in Arts in the field of

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 ...

at the

Madras University The University of Madras (informally known as Madras University) is a public state university in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1857, it is one of the oldest and among the most prestigious universities in India, incorporated by an a ...

. After his education, he began his professional career at the Tamil Nadu Official Language Commission in the mid-1970s, as a translator of law books and documents from English to Tamil, working under Justice Maharajan. In addition to this, he continued writing poetry, bringing out a second anthology of poems in 1979, titled ''Thiruthi Ezhuthiya Theerpugal'' ('Revised and rewritten').

Family and personal life

He is married to Ponmani, a Tamil scholar and former professor at the Meenakshi College for Women. They have two sons, Madhan Karky and Kabilan, who both work as lyricists and dialogue writers for Tamil films.

Film career

Debut and early years

Upon reading his poems, he was signed on as a lyricist by the director

for the film ''

'' in the year 1980. The first song he wrote in his career, was "Pon Maalai Pozhuthu", which was composed by "Isaignani"

and sung by S.P. Balasubrahmanyam. The first song of his that was released, was "Batrakali Uttamaseeli" (also composed by Ilaiyaraaja) from the film '' Kaali'', which was released four months before ''Nizhalgal''. Vairamuthu quit his career as a translator to work full-time in the film industry. After ''Nizhalgal'', Vairamuthu and Ilaiyaraaja kicked off a successful collaboration which would last a little more than half a decade. Their joint association with director Bharathiraja, led to some of the most critically acclaimed soundtracks such as ''

Alaigal Oivathillai ''Alaigal Oivathillai'' () is a 1981 Indian Tamil-language romance film written and directed by Bharathiraja, from a story by Manivannan. The film stars two new debutants Karthik and Radha, while Thiagarajan, Silk Smitha and Kamala Kamesh app ...

'' (which won Vairamuthu his first

Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Lyricist The Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Lyricist is given by the state government as part of its annual Tamil Nadu State Film Awards for Tamil (Kollywood) films. The list Here is a list of the award winners and the films for which they won. ...

), ''

Kaadhal Oviyam ''Kadhal Oviyam'' () is a 1982 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Bharathiraja. The film stars Kannan, in his only major screen appearance, and Radha. It was released on 30 April 1982. Plot Sakthi was an orphan, born in tem ...

'', ''

Mann Vasanai ''Mann Vasanai'' () is a 1983 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Bharathiraja. Starring debutants Pandiyan and Revathi, with Vinu Chakravarthy, Ganthimathi, and Y. Vijaya in supporting roles, the film was a blockbuster, a ...

'', '' Pudhumai Penn'', ''

Oru Kaidhiyin Diary ''Oru Kaidhiyin Diary'' () is a 1985 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film directed by Bharathiraja and co-written by K. Bhagyaraj. The film stars Kamal Haasan. It was high financially successful and completed 175 day run in theatres becom ...

'', ''

Muthal Mariyathai ''Muthal Mariyathai'' (; ) is a 1985 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film produced, directed and co-written by Bharathiraja. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan and Radha, with Vadivukkarasi, newcomers Deepan and Ranjini, Janagaraj, Sathyaraj, ...

'' (which won Vairamuthu his first National Award for Best Lyricist) and ''

Kadalora Kavithaigal ''Kadalora Kavithaigal'' () is a 1986 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Bharathiraja. The film stars Sathyaraj and Rekha, with Raja, Janagaraj and Kamala Kamesh in supporting roles. It is about transformation of a ruffian, w ...

''. During the period he was working with Ilaiyaraaja, Vairamuthu collaborated with director

Mani Ratnam Gopala Ratnam Subramaniam (born 2 June 1956), known professionally as Mani Ratnam, is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer who predominantly works in Tamil cinema and few Hindi, Telugu and Kannada films. Ratnam has won six ...

for the first time in ''

Idhaya Kovil ''Idaya Kovil'' () is a 1985 Indian Tamil-language film directed by Mani Ratnam, starring Mohan, Ambika, Radha and Goundamani. The score and soundtrack were composed by Ilaiyaraaja which went on to become huge hits. The film, released on 14 ...

'' in 1985, penning the song "Naan Padum Mouna Ragam" (which inspired the title of Ratnam's breakthrough ''

Mouna Ragam ''Mouna Ragam'' (; ) is a 1986 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film written and directed by Mani Ratnam, and produced by G. Venkateswaran. The film stars Mohan and Revathi, with Karthik (guest appearance), V. K. Ramasamy, Ra. Sankaran ...

'', which was released in the following year). Besides their work with Bharathiraja, the combination of the lyricist and the composer tasted success with more soundtracks such as ''Raja Paarvai'', ''

Ninaivellam Nithya ''Ninaivellam Nithya'' () is a 1982 Indian Tamil-language romance film written and directed by C. V. Sridhar. The film stars Karthik and newcomer Gigi. It was released on 18 June 1982. Plot Chandru, a young and carefree guy visits an esta ...

'', ''

Nallavanukku Nallavan ''Nallavanukku Nallavan'' () is a 1984 Indian Tamil-language action drama film, directed by S. P. Muthuraman and produced by AVM Productions. A remake of the 1983 Telugu film '' Dharmaatmudu'', it stars Rajinikanth and Raadhika, with Karthik, ...

'', '' Salangai Oli'' and '' Sindhu Bhairavi'' (the latter two yielding Ilaiyaraaja his first two National Awards for Music Direction). Vairamuthu also worked as a lyricist with composer

M.S. Viswanathan Manayangath Subramanian Viswanathan (24 June 1928 – 14 July 2015), also known as M.S.V., was an Indian music director, singer and actor who predominantly worked in Tamil film industry. He was popularly known as ''Mellisai Mannar''. He compose ...

on the film ''

Thanneer Thanneer ''Thaneer Thaneer'' () is a 1981 Indian Tamil language political drama film written and directed by K. Balachander, starring Saritha, Shunmugham, V. K. Veeraswami and Radha Ravi. The film, based on the 1980 play of the same name by Komal Swa ...

'' and

V. S. Narasimhan V. S. Narasimhan (born 1943) is an Indian violinist and composer. Life Narasimhan is the son of the violinist Gottuvadyam Srinivasa Iyengar. He studied Carnatic music from age four under his father. Narasimhan also learnt Western classical mus ...

on the films ''

Achamillai Achamillai ''Achamillai Achamillai'' () is a 1984 Indian Tamil-language political drama film written and directed by K. Balachander. It stars Rajesh and Saritha, with Pavithra, Jeyagopi, Delhi Ganesh, Charle and Delhi Nayakar in supporting roles. It rev ...

'' and '' Kalyana Agathigal''. All three films were directed by

K. Balachander Kailasam Balachander (9 July 1930 – 23 December 2014) was an Indian film maker and playwright who worked mainly in the Tamil cinema. He was well known for his distinct film-making style, and the Indian film industry knew him as a master of un ...

. In 1986, he debuted as screenwriter for the film ''

Natpu ''Natpu'' () is a 1986 Indian Tamil-language film, directed by Ameerjan and written by Vairamuthu. The film stars Karthik, Sripriya, Radha Ravi and Senthil. It was released on 11 April 1986, and won two Cinema Express Awards. Plot Cast ...

'', directed by

Ameerjan Ameerjan was an Indian film director, who has directed Tamil films. He was primarily active in the 1984-1991 and is most noted for his work on films featuring actors Murali and Karthik. Career Ameerjan began his career as a protégé to dire ...

. He later had three further collaborations as a writer with the director in '' Thulasi'' (1987), ''

Vanna Kanavugal ''Vanna Kanavugal'' () is a 1987 Indian Tamil-language film directed by Ameerjan and produced by Kavithalayaa Productions. The film stars Karthik, Murali and Jayashree. It is a remake of the 1984 Malayalam film '' Adiyozhukkukal''. The film, ...

'' (1987) and ''

Vanakkam Vathiyare ''Vanakkam Vathiyare'' () is a 1991 Tamil language action film directed by Ameerjan. The film stars Karthik and Saranya. The film, produced by P. S. V. Hariharan, had musical score by Sampath Selvam and was released on 1 February 1991. Plot ...

'' (1991). He also penned the dialogues for ''

Andru Peytha Mazhaiyil ''Andru Peytha Mazhaiyil'' () is a 1989 Indian Tamil-language film directed and photographed by Ashok Kumar. The film stars Sarath Babu, Silk Smitha and Saranya. It is a remake of the 1987 American film ''Fatal Attraction''. Plot Rajesh is a ...

'' (1989), which was directed by the National award-winning cinematographer

Ashok Kumar Kumudlal Ganguly (13 October 1911 – 10 December 2001), better known by his stage name Ashok Kumar and also by Dadamoni, was an Indian actor who attained iconic status in Indian cinema and who was a member of the cinematic Ganguly family. He ...

Split with Ilaiyaraaja

After K. Balachander's ''

Punnagai Mannan ''Punnagai Mannan'' () is a 1986 Indian Tamil-language musical romantic drama film written and directed by K. Balachander. The film stars Kamal Haasan and Revathi, with Srividya, Rekha, Delhi Ganesh, Sudarshan and Sundar Krishna Urs in suppor ...

'' (1986), Vairamuthu and Ilaiyaraaja parted ways. After their split, Vairamuthu's career stalled for the next five years, when he worked largely on lyrics for other language films that were dubbed in Tamil. His association with director Bharathiraja remained intact, as the duo worked together in the late 1980s on films such as ''

Vedham Pudhithu ''Vedham Pudhithu'' () is a 1987 Indian Tamil-language drama film written and directed by Bharathiraja. It is based on the play ''Saadhigal Illaiyadi Papa'' written by K. Kannan, who after this film came to be known as ''Vedham Pudhithu'' Ka ...

'' (composed by

Devendran Devendran also known as Ravi Devendran is an Indian music composer who is concentrating in Tamil-language films. He is known for the melodious composition of chartbuster ''Kannukkul Nooru Nilava...'' from the Bharathiraja directed film ''Vedha ...

) and ''

Kodi Parakuthu ''Kodi Parakkuthu'' () is a 1988 Indian Tamil-language action film, directed by Bharathiraja. The film starred Rajinikanth, who worked with Bharathiraja nearly a decade after their last film ''16 Vayathinile'' (1977). Plot A mafia leader ...

'' (composed by

Hamsalekha Gangaraju (born June 23, 1951), professionally known as Hamsalekha, is an Indian film composer and a songwriter who works in South Indian cinema, predominantly in the Kannada film industry since the late 1980s. He is also a screenplay writer, di ...

). He also worked with

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

composers such as

R. D. Burman Rahul Dev Burman (27 June 1939 – 4 January 1994) was an Indian music director who is considered one of the most influential composers of India. From the 1960s to the 1990s, Burman composed musical scores for 331 films. Burman did major work w ...

in the film ''

Ulagam Pirandhadhu Enakkaga ''Ulagam Pirandhadhu Enakkaga'' () is a 1990 Indian Tamil-language action comedy film, directed by S. P. Muthuraman and produced by M. Saravanan and Balasubramanian. The film stars Sathyaraj, Gautami, Rupini and Saranya. The film had music ...

'' and the duo

Laxmikant–Pyarelal Laxmikant–Pyarelal were an Indian composer duo, consisting of Laxmikant Shantaram Patil Kudalkar (1937–1998) and Pyarelal Ramprasad Sharma (born 1940). He is known by the nickname “Pyromaniac” due to his flaming style of music. Laxmikan ...

on ''

Uyire Unakkaga ''Uyire Unakkaga'' () is a 1986 Indian Tamil language film, directed by K. Rangaraj. The film stars Mohan, Nadhiya, Chinni Jayanth and Vijayakumar. It was released on 7 March 1986. Plot Running away from her fantastically wealthy but selfi ...

''. During this time, he also collaborated with composer Chandrabose on the films '' Shankar Guru'', ''

Makkal En Pakkam ''Makkal En Pakkam'' () is a 1987 Indian Tamil-language action film directed by Karthik Raghunath. The film stars Sathyaraj, Rajesh, and Ambika. It is a remake of the 1986 Malayalam film '' Rajavinte Makan''. The film was blockbuster at box of ...

'', '' Manithan'', '' Katha Nayagan'', '' Thaimel Aanai'', '' Paatti Sollai Thattathe'', '' Vasanthi'', ''

Raja Chinna Roja ''Raja Chinna Roja'' () is a 1989 Indian Tamil-language children's film, directed by S. P. Muthuraman, and produced by AVM Productions. The plot revolves around Raja (Rajinikanth), who arrives in the city to become an actor. In the process he m ...

'' and '' Sugamana Sumaigal''. They last worked together on ''

Aadhikkam ''Aadhikkam'' () is a 2005 Indian Tamil-language thriller film directed by V. C. Guhanathan. The film stars Ranjith, Vignesh and Monal, with Satya Prakash, Chandra Lakshman, newcomer Aruna Giridhar and Indhu playing supporting roles. The low- ...

'', which was released in 2005.

Resurgence

In 1991,

signed Vairamuthu as a lyricist for three of his productions, which were set for release in the following year: ''

Vaaname Ellai ''Vaaname Ellai'' () is a 1992 Indian Tamil language drama film written and directed by K. Balachander, starring Anand Babu, Ramya Krishnan, Madhoo, Vishali Kannadasan, Rajesh and Babloo Prithiveeraj. The story involves five characters from ...

'', '' Annamalai'' and ''

Roja Roja may refer to: * ''Roja'' (film), a 1992 Tamil-language film by director Mani Ratnam * ''Roja'' (soundtrack), a soundtrack album from the film * Roja Selvamani Roja Selvamani (born Sri Latha Reddy; 17 November 1972), also known as R. K. ...

''. The first film (directed by Balachander himself) was composed by

M.M. Keeravani Koduri Marakathamani Keeravani (born 4 July 1961; credited as M. M. Keeravani) is an Indian film composer, playback singer, and lyricist, who predominantly works in Telugu cinema along with other languages including Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, and Ma ...

(credited as 'Maragadhamani' in Tamil), the second (directed by Suresh Krissna) had music scored by

Deva Deva may refer to: Entertainment * ''Deva'' (1989 film), a 1989 Kannada film * ''Deva'' (1995 film), a 1995 Tamil film * ''Deva'' (2002 film), a 2002 Bengali film * Deva (2007 Telugu film) * ''Deva'' (2017 film), a 2017 Marathi film * Deva ...

, and the third (directed by

) by a debuting composer named A.R. Rahman. ''

'' was director Mani Ratnam's first film after his split with composer Ilaiyaraaja, and its music is widely regarded as changing the face of not just Tamil, but Indian music. The song "Chinna Chinna Aasai", the first film song which Rahman had composed, won Vairamuthu his second National award for the Best Lyricist. The album secured A.R. Rahman the National Award for the Best Music Direction, a first for a debutant. Following ''Roja'', the combination of A.R. Rahman and Vairamuthu became heavily sought after, collaborating on several films throughout the next 25 years. Their continued association with director Mani Ratnam (which spans the length of Rahman's career), led to critical and commercial success on films such as ''

Thiruda Thiruda ''Thiruda Thiruda'' () is a 1993 Indian Tamil-language black comedy caper film directed by Mani Ratnam written along with Ram Gopal Varma. The film stars Prashanth, Anand, Anu Aggarwal and Heera Rajagopal while S. P. Balasubrahmanyam and Salim ...

'' (1993), ''

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

'' (1995), ''

Alaipayuthey ''Alai Payuthey'' ( ) is a 2000 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film written, co-produced and directed by Mani Ratnam, starring Madhavan (in his Tamil debut) and Shalini. The film explores the tensions of married life between two young p ...

'' (2000), '' Kannathil Muthamittal'' (2002), '' Aayutha Ezhuthu'' (2004), '' Raavanan'' (2010), '' Kadal'' (2013), '' O Kadhal Kanmani'' (2015). ''

Kaatru Veliyidai ''Kaatru Veliyidai'' () is a 2017 Indian Tamil-language romantic war film, produced, written and directed by Mani Ratnam. Made under the Madras Talkies banner, it features music composed by A. R. Rahman, cinematography by Ravi Varman and editi ...

'' (2017) and ''

Chekka Chivantha Vaanam ''Chekka Chivantha Vaanam'' () is a 2018 Indian Tamil-language crime drama film directed by Mani Ratnam, co-written with Siva Ananth. Produced by Mani Ratnam under the banner Madras Talkies, along with Lyca Productions, the film features an en ...

'' (2018). Four out of Vairamuthu's seven National awards for the Best Lyricist came out of his association with Rahman (on films such as Roja, ''

Karuththamma ''Karuthamma'' is a 1994 Indian Tamil-language drama film produced and directed by Bharathiraja from a story by M. Rathnakumar. The film stars Raja, Rajashree and Maheswari, with Saranya, Periyar Dasan, Ponvannan, Vadivukkarasi, Vaani, Vadive ...

'', ''

Pavithra ''Pavithra'' is a 1994 Indian Tamil-language drama film written, produced and directed by K. Subash under his home banner, Dhanooja Films. The film stars Raadhika, Nassar, Ajith Kumar and Keerthana. It was released on 2 November 1994, Diwali d ...

''; he was recognized by the National awards committee for his efforts on both these films in 1995, ''

Sangamam ''Sangamam'' () is a 1999 Indian Tamil-language musical romance dance film co written and directed by Suresh Krissna and produced by V. Natarajan of Pyramid Films. The film stars Rahman and newcomer Vindhya with Manivannan, Vijayakumar, Rad ...

'' and ''Kannathil Muthamittal'') and four out of Rahman's six National Awards came from his association with Vairamuthu (on the films ''Roja'', ''

Minsara Kanavu ''Minsara Kanavu'' () is a 1997 Indian Tamil-language musical romantic drama film that was co-written and directed by Rajiv Menon. The film stars Arvind Swamy, Prabhu Deva, and Kajol in her Tamil debut, and revolves around Priya (Kajol), a ...

'', ''Kannathil Muthamittal'' and ''Kaatru Veliyidai''). Singers

P. Unnikrishnan Parakkal Unnikrishnan (born 9 July 1966) is an Indian Carnatic vocalist and playback singer. Early life and background Unnikrishnan was born to K. Radhakrishnan and Dr. Harini Radhakrishnan in Palakkad, Kerala. The family home, Kesari Kutee ...

, S.P. Balasubrahmanyam,

Shankar Mahadevan Shankar Mahadevan (born 3 March 1967) is an Indian singer and composer who is part of the Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy trio that writes music for Indian films. Personal life and early career Shankar Mahadevan was born in Chembur, Mumbai into a Tam ...

, Swarnalatha,

K.S. Chitra Krishnan Nair Shantakumari Chithra (born 27 July 1963), always credited as K. S. Chithra or Chithra, is an Indian playback singer and Carnatic musician. In a career spanning over four decades, she has recorded over 25,000 songs in various In ...

and

Shashaa Tirupati Shashaa Kiran Tirupati (born 21 December 1989) is a Canadian playback singer, songwriter, and music producer of Indian descent. Popularly known as "The Humma Girl", in 2018, she won the National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer, as wel ...

have all won National awards for their work in collaboration with this duo. In addition to their association with Mani Ratnam, the team of Rahman and Vairamuthu are also noted for their collaboration with director

Shankar Shankar may refer to: People * Shankar (name), including a list of people with the name * Sankar (writer) (Mani Shankar Mukherjee), Bengali writer * L. Shankar, Indian violinist *S. Shankar, Indian film director commonly credited as Shankar * San ...

(on '' Gentleman'', ''

Kadhalan ''Kadhalan'' ( ) is a 1994 Indian Tamil-language romantic thriller film written and directed by S. Shankar and produced by K. T. Kunjumon. The film stars Prabhu Deva and Nagma (in her major Tamil cinema debut), while Vadivelu, Raghuvaran, ...

'', ''

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

'', '' Jeans'', ''

Mudhalvan ''Mudhalvan'' () is a 1999 Indian Tamil-language political action thriller film produced by R. Madhesh and S. Shankar, written and directed by Shankar. The film stars Arjun, Manisha Koirala and Raghuvaran while Vadivelu and Manivannan appear in ...

'', ''

Sivaji Sivaji is an Indian actor who appears in Telugu films. He won Nandi Award for Best Male Dubbing Artist for the movie '' Dil'' (voice for Nitin). Career Sivaji is from Narsarsopet in Guntur district. Sivaji started his stint as an editor in ...

'', and ''

Enthiran ''Enthiran'' () is a 2010 Indian Tamil-language science fiction action film written and directed by S. Shankar. It is the first instalment in the ''Enthiran'' franchise. The film stars Rajinikanth and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan with Danny ...

''), Bharathiraja (on ''

Kizhakku Cheemayile ''Kizhakku Cheemayile'' () is a 1993 Indian Tamil-language drama film directed by Bharathiraja. It stars Vijayakumar, Raadhika and Napoleon, while Vignesh, Pandiyan, and Vadivelu play supporting roles. The film involves a touching sentimenta ...

'', ''Karuththamma'', ''

Anthimanthaarai ''Anthimanthaarai'' () is a 1996 Indian Tamil-language historical drama film. The film stars Vijayakumar and Jayasudha. It is produced by Chandraleela Bharathiraja and Thilaka Ganesh The director of this film is Bharathiraja. The film won the ...

'' and ''

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...

''),

K. S. Ravikumar K. S. Ravikumar (born 30 May 1958) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, primarily working in Tamil films. Career 1990–1997 Ravikumar worked as co-director on R. B. Choudary's production ''Pudhu Vasantham'' direct ...

(on '' Muthu'', ''

Padayappa ''Padayappa'' is a 1999 Indian Tamil-language masala film written and directed by K. S. Ravikumar. It stars Sivaji Ganesan, Rajinikanth, Ramya Krishnan and Soundarya with Abbas, Lakshmi, Radha Ravi and Nassar playing supporting roles. The ...

'' and ''

Varalaru ''Varalaru: History Of Godfather'', or simply known as ''Varalaru'' (), is a 2006 Indian Tamil-language action-drama film written and directed by K. S. Ravikumar, and produced by S. S. Chakravarthy under the banner NIC Arts. The film stars ...

'') and

Rajiv Menon Rajiv Menon (born 20 April 1963) is an Indian filmmaker who has worked as a director and cinematographer in several Indian regional film industries. After making his breakthrough as a film cinematographer with Mani Ratnam's drama ''Bombay'' (19 ...

(on ''Minsara Kanavu'' and ''

Kandukonden Kandukonden ''Kandukondain Kandukondain'' (also released internationally under the translated title ''I Have Found It'') is a 2000 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed and co-written by Rajiv Menon. Based on Jane Austen's 1811 novel ''Sens ...

''). Some of their other popular films include ''

Pudhiya Mugam ''Pudhiya Mugam'' () is a 1993 Indian Tamil-language thriller film directed by Suresh Chandra Menon. It stars Revathi, Suresh Chandra Menon, Vineeth and Kasthuri. The film featured music by A. R. Rahman. ''Pudhiya Mugam'' is an adaptation ...

'', ''

Duet A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a solo ...

'', '' May Madham'', ''

Rhythm Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular re ...

'', ''

Kochadaiiyaan ''Kochadaiiyaan: The Legend'' () is a 2014 Indian Tamil-language 3D animated action film written by K. S. Ravikumar and directed by Soundarya Rajinikanth. It is India's first photorealistic motion capture film, featuring characters whose de ...

'', and '' 24''. Vairamuthu is also known for his work in the 90s and early 2000s with composer

, on popular soundtracks such as Annamalai, '' Baasha'', ''

Aasai ''Aasai'' () () is a 1995 Indian Tamil-language romantic thriller film, written and directed by Vasanth and produced by Mani Ratnam. The film stars Ajith Kumar and debutant Suvaluxmi, with Prakash Raj, Rohini, Poornam Viswanathan, Nizhalgal R ...

'', '' Once More'', '' Arunachalam'', ''

Nerukku Ner ''Nerrukku Ner'' () is a 1997 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film written and directed by Vasanth and produced by Mani Ratnam. The film stars Vijay, Suriya, Simran, and Kausalya, while Raghuvaran, Shanthi Krishna, Baby Jennifer, Karan ...

'', '' Vaali'', '' Kushi'', and '' Panchathanthiram''. He has also worked extensively with

Bharadwaj Bharadwaj ( hi, भारद्वाज) is a surname mostly used by Brahmins. Notable people with the surname include: * Abhay Bharadwaj (1954–2020), Indian advocate turned politician *Anasuya Bharadwaj (born 1982), Indian television presenter ...

(on popular soundtracks such as ''

Kaadhal Mannan ''Kaadhal Mannan(AJITH)'' () is a 1998 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Saran, which stars Ajith Kumar and Maanu. The film also saw music composer M. S. Viswanathan make his debut in a supporting role, whilst Vivek, Kar ...

'', ''

Pooveli ''Pooveli'' () is a 1998 Indian Tamil-language drama film directed by Selva. An unofficial remake (with Indian twist) of ''A Walk in the Clouds'' (1995), the film stars Karthik, Abbas, Kausalya and Heera Rajagopal. The film's score and sound ...

'', ''

Amarkalam ''Amarkalam'' () () is a 1999 Indian Tamil-language romantic action film written and directed by Saran and produced by V. Sudhir Kumar. The film stars Ajith Kumar and Shalini, with Raghuvaran, Raadhika and Nassar in supporting roles. ''Amarka ...

'', ''

Rojavanam ''Rojavanam'' () is a 1999 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Selva. The film stars Karthik, Laila and Malavika in lead roles. The film's score and soundtrack were composed by Bharathwaj. Plot Muthu ( Karthik) is the favo ...

'', ''

Parthen Rasithen ''Parthen Rasithen'' () is a 2000 Indian Tamil-language romantic thriller film written and directed by Saran. The film stars Prashanth, Simran and Laila, while Raghuvaran, Jai Ganesh, Vinu Chakravarthy, Vaiyapuri, Charle, Dhamu, Lawrence Rag ...

'', '' Rojakootam'', ''

Gemini Gemini may refer to: Space * Gemini (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac ** Gemini in Chinese astronomy * Project Gemini, the second U.S. crewed spaceflight program * Gemini Observatory, consisting of telescopes in the Norther ...

'', ''

Jay Jay ''Jay Jay'' is a 2003 Indian Tamil-language romance film written and directed by Saran. The film stars R. Madhavan, Amogha and Pooja, while Kalabhavan Mani, Charle, Dhamu and Malavika Avinash also play key supporting roles. Produced by V. R ...

'', ''

Attagasam ''Attahasam'' () () is a 2004 Indian Tamil language, Tamil-language action film, action masala film, masala film written and directed by Saran (director), Saran featuring Ajith Kumar in dual lead roles. Pooja (actress), Pooja, Sujatha (actress), S ...

'', ''

Vasool Raja MBBS ''Vasool Raja MBBS'' () is a 2004 Indian Tamil-language comedy drama film directed by Saran. It is a Tamil remake of the 2003 Hindi film ''Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.'', which is inspired by the 1998 American film ''Patch Adams''. The film stars Kamal ...

'', ''

Idhaya Thirudan ''Idhaya Thirudan'' () is a 2006 Indian Tamil-language romantic action film written and directed by Saran. The film stars Jayam Ravi and Kamna Jethmalani, while Prakash Raj, Vani Viswanath, Santhanam, Kalpana, and Nassar play supporting r ...

'', ''

Vattaram ''Vattaram'' is a 2006 Indian Tamil-language action gangster film written, produced, and directed by Saran. The film stars Arya, Napoleon, and Kirat Bhattal. The film's score and soundtrack are composed by Bharathwaj. The film released on 21 ...

'', '' Asal'' and '' Aayirathil Iruvar''),

Harris Jayaraj Harris Jayaraj (born 8 January 1975) is an Indian composer from Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He composes soundtracks predominantly for Tamil films, while also having composed for a few films in Telugu and two films in Hindi. He has been honoured with K ...

D. Imman Immanuel Vasanth Dinakaran (born 24 January 1983), better known as D. Imman, is an Indian film composer and singer, predominantly working in Tamil cinema. Also worked in Kannada, Malayalam, Telugu, and Hindi film industry. His first film as mu ...

, Vidyasagar, Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy (on both their Tamil projects, ''

Aalavandhan ''Aalavandhan'' () is a 2001 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film directed by Suresh Krissna and produced by S. Thanu. An adaptation of the novel ''Dhayam'' that was written by Kamal Haasan in 1984, The film stars Haasan in dual roles, w ...

'' and ''

Vishwaroopam ''Vishwaroopam'' (titled ''Vishwaroop'' in Hindi; ) is a 2013 Indian action spy film directed and produced by Kamal Haasan, who also enacts the lead role, and is written by Kamal Hassan, Chakri Toleti and Atul Tiwari. The film has Rahul Bose ...

''),

N. R. Raghunanthan N. R. Raghunanthan is an Indian film score and soundtrack, soundtrack composer. He has scored music for Tamil cinema, Tamil films. NR R debuted as a music director in 2010 with ''Thenmerku Paruvakaatru'' directed by Seenu Ramasamy which met with ...

(which secured him his sixth National Award for the film ''

Thenmerku Paruvakaatru ''Thenmerku Paruvakatru'' () is a 2010 Indian Tamil-language drama film written and directed by Seenu Ramasamy and produced by Shibu Issac. The film is named after a song composed by A. R. Rahman for the film, Karuthamma. It stars Vijay Sethup ...

'') and

Yuvan Shankar Raja Yuvan Shankar Raja or Abdul Haliq (born 31 August 1979) is an Indian film score and soundtrack composer and singer-songwriter. He mainly scores music for Tamil films. Considered a versatile composer, he is particularly known for his use of Wes ...

(the son of

; their association yielded him his seventh National Award for the film '' Dharma Durai''). During his nearly 40-year career, he has worked with over 150 music directors. In addition to lyrics, Vairamuthu has also penned poems which feature as part of the dialogue, on films such as ''

'', ''

Iruvar ''Iruvar'' () is a 1997 Indian Tamil-language epic political drama film co-written, produced and directed by Mani Ratnam. The film, inspired by the lives of M. Karunanidhi, M. G. Ramachandran and J. Jayalalithaa is set against the backdrop ...

'' (for the character played by Prakash Raj), and ''

'' (for the character of Nandu; played by

Kamal Haasan Kamal Haasan (born 7 November 1954) is an Indian actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, playback singer, television presenter and politician who works mainly in Tamil cinema and has also appeared in some Telugu, Malayalam, Hindi, Kannada and Bengali l ...

). He has also penned lyrics for the theme songs of many Tamil television shows and jingles for advertisements, the most notable among them being the theme for the Tamil soap opera '' Chithi''.

Contribution to literature

Vairamuthu has written 37 books which include collections of poetry as well as novels in the Tamil language. Several of them have been translated into

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

and

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

. He introduced the work of foreign poets to Tamil readers in his ''Ella Nadhiyilum En Odam''. Over 2.6 million copies of his works have been sold. In 1991, four of his books were released on the same day in a grand manner in

Madurai Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration in ...

by the ex-Chief Minister Karunanidhi. He has also been a speaker at many prominent Tamil conferences in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...

Maldives Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

and

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. For his work in literature, he was also conferred the titles of ''Kavi Samrat'' ("King of Poetry") by former

Indian Prime Minister The prime minister of India (IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the ...

Atal Bihari Vajpayee, ''Kaapiya Kavignar'' ("Epic Poet") by former

Indian President The president of India (IAST: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murmu i ...

A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam (; 15 October 193127 July 2015) was an Indian aerospace scientist and statesman who served as the 11th President of India from 2002 to 2007. He was born and raised in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu and studied phy ...

and ''Kaviperarasu'' ("The Emperor of Poets") by former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi.

Notable works

;''Kallikkattu Ithikasam (The Saga of the Drylands)'' Kallikkattu Ithikasam depicts the story of the people of a village who have turned refugees in independent India. In the 1950s, when Vaigai dam was constructed in Madurai District, 14 villages were vacated for creating the water catchment area. This novel narrates the tearful story of those refugees who lost their land under the water. The author is a child born to one such family and had lived through the misery of this migration in his childhood. The story portrays the tears, blood and pain of the villagers whose families were crushed as a result of modernization. The soul of the novel echoes the truth behind the values of agrarian India and the virtues of farmers which are eternal. This saga won Vairamuthu the

for the Best Literary Work in the year 2003, and has been translated into 22 languages. The novel sold over a lakh copies. ;''Karuvachchi Kaviyam (The Epic of Karuvachchi)'' Karuvachchi Kaviyam revolves around a vulnerable Indian village woman who has been enslaved by the illiterate male chauvinistic community. ;''Poems of Vairamuthu'' The core of Vairamuthu's poetry portrays his pleading to the human to appreciate nature, pointing to the incredible truth that fire is fire as long as it burns, Earth is Earth as long as it spins and Man is man as long as he struggles. ;''Moondram Ulagappor (Third World War)'' The struggle of the Indian agrarian community due to globalization, liberalisation and global warming is depicted in this novel in the farmer's dialectical language. This novel is a prophecy on the suicides of farmers five years before it had happened. The author was heartbroken when the poverty-stricken farmers who were unable to feed their families due to failure of monsoon, severe drought conditions, debt and despair, committed suicide.

Other endeavors and philanthropic activities

Vairamuthu has set up a foundation, the ''Vairamuthu Educational Trust'', which provides funding to underprivileged families for education of their children. He served as President of the Indo-Soviet Cultural Association. From the proceeds of the sales of ''Moondram Ulaga Poor'', a sum of Rs. 11 lakh was donated to the widows of farmers who committed suicide. He is the founder of the ''Vetri Tamizhar Peravai'', which aims at uplifting society. He also donated a hospital building to the people of his native village of Karattuppatti, and started a library in the name of the esteemed poet

, in his village of Vadugapatti. He has also made contributions to victims of war as well to those of natural calamities.

Controversies

Vairamuthu delivered a speech on the seventh century mystic poet, Andal in January 2018 during a discussion on Andal at the Srivilliputhur Andal Temple where quoted the research of an American scholar who said that Andal belonged to the Devadasi community, a religious system practiced in parts of South India in which a where young girls used to be married to the deity of the temple before they attain puberty and will spend the rest of their lives in the service of the temple. In many cases, they were sexually exploited and pushed into prostitution. He said that Andal had lived and died at the Srirangam temple in Tiruchirappalli according to the American scholar. BJP leader H Raja criticized the speech. Vairamuthu later issued an apology claiming that his speech was intentionally twisted by vested interests and that he has expressed regret for a mistake he did not commit and also said that he only intends to glorify Mother Andal and he has been working on many great Tamil poets. Some Tamil writers claimed that there is nothing controversial about his speech because he only referred the article. Minor girls and boys in

Nithyananda Nithyananda, (born Arunachalam Rajasekaran; 1 January 1978) known among followers as Nithyananda Paramashivam or Paramahamsa Nithyananda, is an Indian Hindu guru, "Godman (India), godman" and cult leader. He is subject of an Interpol Blue not ...

's Ashram published videos using derogatory language, many sexual in nature, as they questioned his speech. This has generated anger amongst the general public, which found the use of children by Nithyananda in such a manner objectionable. A case was also filed against Vairamuthu.

Sexual harassment allegations

As a part of the #MeToo movement, Vairamuthu was accused of sexual harassment in 2018 by singer Chinmayi Sripada and Bhuvana Seshan. Journalist Sandhya Menon also tweeted allegations against Vairamuthu messaged to her by a woman. Hayma Malini claimed that one of the presenters of a TV channel, where she worked was harassed by Vairamuthu. Vairamuthu denied all allegations and said they are "filled with ulterior motives". He also said that he is ready to face any legal action and said let the court decide.

Filmography

As writer

*''

'' (1986) *''Odangal'' (1986) *'' Thulasi'' (1987) *''

'' (1987) *''

'' (1989) *''

'' (1991) *''

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

'' (1994)

Awards and recognition

Film career

National Film Award for Best Lyrics The National Film Award for Best Lyrics (the Silver Lotus Award) is an honour presented annually at the National Film Awards by the Directorate of Film Festivals (DFF) to a lyricist who has composed the best song for films produced within the In ...

* 1985: All songs from ''

'' * 1992: "Chinna Chinna Aasai" from ''

'' * 1994: "Poralae Ponnuthayi" from ''

''; "Uyirum Neeye" from ''

'' * 1999: "Mudhal Murai Killipparthaein" from ''

'' * 2002: "Oru Theivam Thantha Poovey" from '' Kannathil Muthamittal'' * 2010: "Kallikkaattil Perandha Thaayae" from ''

'' * 2016: "Endha Pakkam" from '' Dharma Durai'' Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist – Tamil * 2005 "Oh Sukumari" from ''

Anniyan ''Anniyan'' () is a 2005 Indian Tamil-language psychological action thriller film written and directed by S. Shankar and produced by V. Ravichandran of Aascar Films. The plot centres on a disillusioned everyman whose frustration at what he see ...

'' – Won * 2008: "Vaa Vaa" from ''

Abhiyum Naanum Abhiyum Naanum may refer to: * ''Abhiyum Naanum'' (film), a 2008 Indian Tamil-language film * ''Abhiyum Naanum'' (TV series), a 2020 Indian Tamil-language soap opera See also * ''Abhiyum Njanum ''Abhiyum Njanum'' (''Abhi and Me'') is a 2013 ...

'' – Nominated * 2009: "Nenje Nenje" from '' Ayan'' – Nominated * 2010: "Kadhal Anukkal" from ''

''; "Usure Poguthey" from '' Raavanan'' – Nominated * 2011: "Sara Sara" from ''

Vaagai Sooda Vaa ''Vaagai Sooda Vaa'' () is a 2011 Tamil-language period drama film directed by A. Sarkunam, directing his second film after ''Kalavani''. It stars Vimal and newcomer Ineya, with Bhagyaraj, Ponvannan and Thambi Ramaiah playing supporting roles. T ...

'' – Won * 2012: "Para Para" from ''

Neerparavai ''Neerparavai'' () is a 2012 Indian Tamil-language drama film written and directed by Seenu Ramasamy and produced by Udhayanidhi Stalin. It stars Vishnu and Sunaina, and Nandita Das plays the older version of the latter's character. Saranya Ponva ...

'' – Nominated *

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

: "Chithirai Nila" from '' Kadal''; "Sengaade" from '' Paradesi'' – Nominated * 2014: "Ovvondrai Thirudigarai" from '' Jeeva'' – Nominated * 2016: "Endha Pakkam" from '' Dharma Durai'' – Nominated * 2017: "Vaan" from ''

'' – Won

*1981-1982: "Vizhiyil Vizhundu" and "Kadhal Oviyam" from ''

'' *1995: "Poralae Ponnuthayi" from ''

'' *1996: "Oruvan Oruvan" from '' Muthu''; "Kannaalanae" from

'' *2000: "Mudhal Murai Killipparthaein" from ''

'' *2005: "Oh Sukumari" and "Iyengaaru Veetu" from

*2007: All songs from ''

Periyar Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy (17 September 1879 – 24 December 1973), revered as Periyar or Thanthai Periyar, was an Indian social activist and politician who started the Self-Respect Movement and Dravidar Kazhagam. He is known as the ' ...

'' SIIMA Award for Best Lyricist – Tamil * 2012: "Para Para" from ''

'' – Nominated *

: "Nenjukkulle" from '' Kadal'' – Nominated * 2014: "Kandangi Kandangi" from ''

Jilla ''Jilla'' () is a 2014 Indian Tamil-language action drama film written and directed by R. T. Neason and produced by R. B. Choudary through the company Super Good Films. Starring Mohanlal and Vijay athe film revolves around the conflict bet ...

'' – Nominated * 2015: "Malargal Kettaen” from '' O Kadhal Kanmani'' – Won *6th South Indian International Movie Awards, 2016: "Endha Pakkam" from '' Dharma Durai'' – Nominated *7th South Indian International Movie Awards, 2017: "Vaan" from ''

'' – Nominated Vijay Award for Best Lyricist *2nd Vijay Awards, 2007: "Kaatrin Mozhi" from ''Mozhi (film), Mozhi'' – Nominated *3rd Vijay Awards, 2008: "Vaa Vaa" from ''

'' – Nominated *4th Vijay Awards, 2009: "Nenje Nenje" from '' Ayan'' – Nominated *5th Vijay Awards, 2010: "Arima Arima" from ''

''; "Kallikkaatil Pirandha Thaaye" from ''

'' – Won *6th Vijay Awards, 2011: "Sara Sara" from ''

'' – Won *8th Vijay Awards, 2013: "Nenjukkule" from '' Kadal'' – Nominated *9th Vijay Awards, 2014: "Maatram Ondru" from ''

'' – Nominated

Civilian Honors

*2003:

: For Distinguished Services in Literature and Education *2014:

: For Distinguished Services in Literature and Education

Literary awards and honors

*1999: S. P. Adithanar Literary Award for Best Tamil Novel for ''Thanneer Thesam'' *2003:

for Best Literary Work for ''Kallikkaattu Ithihaasam'' *2009: Sadhana Samman for contributions to Indian literature through poetry, novels and lyrics. *2013: Ilakkiya Sinthanai Award for Best Tamil Novel for ''Moondram Ulaga Por'' *2013: Tansri K.R. Somasundaram Literature Foundation Award for Best Novel in Tamil Literature for ''Moondram Ulaga Por'' *2018: Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry's Book of the Year Award for ''Nākapani Vaṉkā Itihāsh'' (Hindi version of ''Kallikkaattu Ithihaasam'')

Other honors

Tamil Nadu State Government Awards *1990: Kalaimamani Award *1990: Paavendhar Award Honorary doctorates *2007: Tamil Nadu Open University *2008: Madurai Kamaraj University *2009: Bharathiar University *2021: O. N. V. Literary Award instituted by the ONV Cultural Academy (declined)

Published works

In Tamil: *''Vaikarai Megangal'' (1972) *''Thiruthi Ezhuthiiya Theerpugal'' (1979) *''Innoru Dhesiya Geetham'' (1982) *''Kavi Raajan Kadhai'' (1982) *''Idhu Varai Naan'' (1983) (his autobiography at the age of 28) *''En Pazhaiya Panai Oolaigal'' (1983) *''Vaanam Thottuvidum Thooramthan'' (1983) *''En Jannalin Vazhiye'' (1984) *''Mounathin Sapthangal'' (1984) *''Kalvettugal'' (1984) *''Kodi Marathin Vergal'' (1984) *''Kelvigalaal Oru Velvi'' (1984) *''Ratha Dhaanam'' (1985) *''Sirpiye Unnai Sethukukiren'' (1985) *''Netru Potta Kolam'' (1985) *''Meendum En Thottilukku'' (1986) *''Ella Nadhiyilum En Odam'' (1989) *''Vadugapatti Mudhal Volga Varai'' (1989) *''Indha Pookkal Virpanaikkalla'' (1991) *''Kaavi Nirathil oru Kaadhal'' (1991) *''Indha Kulathil Kal Erinthavargal'' (1991) *''Oru Porkkalamum Irandu Pookkalum'' (1991) *''Sigarangalai Nokki'' (1992) *''Idhanal Sakalamaanavargalukkum'' (1992) *''Villodu Vaa Nilave'' (1994) *''Thanneer Thesam'' (1996) *''Thamizhukku Niram Undu'' (1997) *''Peyyena Peyyum Mazhai'' (1999)* *''Vairamuthu Kavithaikal'' (2000) *''Kallikkaattu Ithihaasam'' (2001) *''Konjam Theneer Niraiya Vaanam'' (2005) *''Oru Giramathu Paravaiyum Sila kadalgalum'' (2005) *''Karuvaachi Kaaviyam'' (2006) *''Paarkadal'' (2008) *''Aayiram Paadalgal'' (2011) *''Moondram Ulaga Por'' (2013) *''Vairamuthu Sirukathaikal'' (2015) *''Tamizhatruppadai'' (2019) Works Published in other Languages: * ''Drops That Hop Without A Stop'' (Selected poems in English) – 2000 – Translated by Dr Vishnu Priya, Published by Hindi Hridaya, Chennai. * ''A Drop in Search of the Ocean'' (Selected poems in English) – 2003 – Translated by Balan Menon, Published by Rupa & Co., New Delhi * ''Vairamuthu Baavani'' (Selected poems in Hindi) – 2003 – Translated by Kamakshi subramaniam, Published by Hindi Hridaya, Chennai * ''Bindhu Sindhu Ki Oor'' (Selected poems in Hindi) – 2004 – Translated by Dr Vishnu Priya, Published by Rajkamal Prakashan Pvt Ltd, New Delhi * ''God Morgen Lyrikk'' (Selected Lyrics in Norwegian) – 2004 – Translated by Kowsihaa Gowrithasan, Published by Kowsihaa Gowrithasan, Norge * ''Vairamuthu Ravara Muvathmuru Kavithegalu'' – 2009 (Selected poems in Kannada) – Translated by Prof. Malarvili, Published by Christ University Kannada, Bangalore. * ''Siruthu Neram Manithanayi Irunthavan'' – 2017 (Selected short stories in Malayalam) – Translated by K.S.Venkitachalam, Published by Mathrubhumi Books, Kozhikode * ''Nākapani Vaṉkā Itihāsh - Hindi'' (''Kallikkattu Ithihaasam'') – 2017 – (Sahitya Akademi Award Winning Novel & FICCI Book of the Year Award –2018) – Translated by H.Balasubramaniam, Published by Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi * ''Kalligaadina Ithihaasa - Kannada (Kallikkattu Ithihaasam) – 2021 – (Sahitya Akademi Award Winning Novel & FICCI Book of the Year Award –2018) – Translated by Malarvizhi.K, Published by Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi

References

External links

*
Vairamuthu's Thanner Thesam at MaduraiProject

{{Authority control 1953 births Poets from Tamil Nadu Living people 20th-century Indian poets Indian lyricists Tamil poets Tamil writers Tamil film poets Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Tamil Recipients of the Padma Shri in literature & education, Vairamuthu, R. Filmfare Awards South winners Tamil Nadu State Film Awards winners Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in literature & education Indian male poets People from Theni district 20th-century Indian male writers Best Lyrics National Film Award winners Tamil-language lyricists