Karunanidhi: The Poet of Progress

I had come to the house to meet Kanimozhi. They said the DMK patriarch was present, and I entered hesitantly to find him sitting on a sofa in the drawing room.

“Appa, her name is Rajathi. She is a Panchayat leader. She also writes poetry,” Kanimozhi introduced me. Upon hearing this, he turned to me and asked me about my constituency. I was trembling slightly, but managed to say the name of my village. He recalled that he had visited it for the wedding of a prominent person’s daughter. “But, isn’t a Muslim the Panchayat leader in that village,” he asked, puzzled.

“That person is me,” I replied.

“Is Rajathi a Muslim name?” The wonder was evident in his voice.

 “We name people like that in our parts,” I said.

I was still shaking. He was trying to calm me down. “Do you write only poetry or do you do stories as well,” he enquired. At that time, he had been chief minister for four terms, and it took a long moment for me to believe he was talking to me. As a woman, I had been elected because of a law in the Panchayat system he had brought in. My other identity was that of a writer. These two reasons were enough for him to talk to me.

Salma with Karunanidhi

The love he bestowed on people like me was very particular in nature. Each one of us enjoyed a special relationship with him. He was naturally inclined to be concerned for writers. It was often obvious that he considered himself a writer and was very aware of this fact. When I met him on subsequent occasions, he would say that he had read my travelogues and remarked that they were well written. He would also enquire what book I was currently working on.  Can you believe that? He acted as if he considered it his duty to encourage me in my activities, as I came from a minority community.

I went on to join the party in 2004. When I got a chance to give my books (four of them) to Kalaignar, I was surprised to see him read one back and forth, analysing it—a happy moment for me. I believed he was happy that I was a writer as well as a party member. He insisted that I write in the Murasoli newspaper.

In 2005, when I was invited to Pakistan, I went to his house to receive his blessings. A colleague of mine, who had accompanied me, bowed down—a practice Kalaignar had never liked. But, appreciating the Islamic practice of not bowing down to anyone, he liked the fact that I didn’t bow.

Once, when I had gone to hand over a translation of my book, he made fun of me as it was in German. The next day, he discussed my movie, books and writings in a meeting with senior party members. I came to know about it through a party official; it gave me goosebumps.  I felt that moment to be one of the most rewarding moments of my life, as I realised that he respected and appreciated me as a writer more than as a party member.

Another time, I had given him a travelogue that I’d written, and he’d promised to read it and give his comments. Later, senior party leader Duraimurugan told me that Kalaignar had appreciated the book in a personal conversation with him, and asked him to read it, handing the copy over to him; I was touched by that gesture. And during a TV show, I was asked about Kalaignar’s poems and writings. Having watched the programme, he later called me and expressed his approbation of the views I’d put forth.

He always maintained contact with writers as he believed they were the instruments of social change. As a writer himself, he held that society would always be amenable to change. And in his role as a politician, the same sentiment saw him implement laws and schemes to address the problems faced by oppressed people in our community; he meant to alleviate the suffering of each one of us. Samathuvapuram (equality village), one of his most successful schemes, created a small town with basic infrastructure and representation for every community or religion. Another initiative was the marriage allowance for girls who had completed the eighth standard, later extended to the 12^thstandard.  This has been effective in preventing child marriage, and has encouraged more families to let their daughters complete their schooling.

Just as he took forward the ideals of his movement through his laws, speeches, protests and principles, he was keen on recording them via his writings. His principles of Dravidian identity were portrayed through drama, movies, stories etc. He utilised art as a major medium for his principles to reach the masses—and brought about remarkable social change through this practice. His works were sharply critical of superstition, and he continuously created books that hit hard against the grip of such beliefs over the community. He believed in the reach of his writings, and he renewed himself in this fashion. In one film, he questioned when indeed ‘Ambal’ (goddess) had spoken, and made sure his ideology reached all and sundry in Tamil Nadu.

He believed the laws he brought in would ultimately equalise the classes, and he worked hard to combat social stratification. This is why the whole of India is looking on in awe at his 80-year political journey. He fought for the freedom and liberty of Dravidians, and this is evident from the laws he got passed in the assembly. History will reveal that the foundation he laid was not just for this generation, but for the many more to come.

Despite coming to power, he never stopped writing, as his basic intention and aim was always to develop society to the best it could be. And despite his stature, every time I met him, it was clear that he didn’t want to maintain a distance from the party cadre just because he was chief minister. He took pride in travelling along with them. He undertook his long journey in the Dravidian movement in the same manner.

Such was his genre and persona, which was always appreciated by all the stalwarts of the Dravidian party he led from the front for more than five decades. “I never know how many hours he sleeps for,” said Anna.  “He is such a precious gem forever,” said Periyar.

Today, we have a thousand reasons to remember him. When everyone in India was dismissive of women, he wanted them to have equal rights to property. He was among the first in India to take up the cause, thereby playing a leading role in implementing the law in all the states of India. There may be a hundred reasons why we should celebrate him, but this law made sure that he would go down in history. There are, of course, other reasons. They need not be mentioned. They have affected our day-to-day lives and will continue to do so.

His life’s biggest challenge, amid several other great struggles, was to establish a separate Dravidian identity. Among many achievements, he took up this challenge and, through hard work, made it possible. Tamil Nadu has been shaped by his personal beliefs. If the state has progressed this much, he is the hero of that tale.

 (The writer is a Tamil author, social worker and DMK member.)