Published Date: Feb 9, 2013
Literature,
music and art have only one goal - to link people with each other, says
renowned writer Prapanchan. He was recently conferred with the Saaral Award, instituted by noted film
directors JD and Jerry under the aegis of their Robert Arokiam Trust here.
A
native of Puducherry, Prapanchan, whose real name is Sarangapani Vaidyalingam,
worked as a journalist in various Tamil magazines such as Ananda Vikatan. His novels Maanudam
Vellum and Vaanam Vasappadum,
considered as his masterpiece works, were written based on the private diaries
of Anadarangam Pillai, who served as a dubash at the French East India Company.
Pillai’s diaries portrayed the history of Puducherry, the then Pondicherry from 1736 to 1761. Prapanchan was
conferred with the Sahitya Akademi Award in the year 1995 for his novel Vaanam Vasappadum.
When
Prapanchan was at sixth grade, his father took him to Romain Rolland Library
(Puducherry government library now) and got a membership for him. Even at a
very young age, Prapanchan got introduced to literatures of different languages
ranging from Tamil, English, French and Russian.
During
his days as a budding litterateur in the then popular Vaanampaadi literary circle, he had a pseudonym ‘Prapanchagaanan’ .
“I did
my college in Thanjavur. Through well-known writer Thanjai Prakash, I got
introduced to litterateurs of modern Tamil literary arena. During those days, I
was attracted to Carnatic music” he wrote in his blog prapanchan.in.
Most of
his works, whether short stories like Mari
Engira Aattukkutty or novels like Theevu,
spoke about the importance of kindness among humanity and the relationship
between people. “I was born in a lower middle class family and have witnessed
the pain of poverty,” he said. Based on his personal experiences, he wrote a
novel titled Mahanadi
that grabbed the attention of many.
“The doors
to his room are always open for his literary friends and budding writers,” said
writer S Ramakrishnan, in one of his articles.
Prapanchan’s
only favourite hobby is reading. As he was trained in music, he once admitted,
“If I am not a writer, I would have been a musician.” After the demise of his
better half, the writer has been living alone. His article, a tribute to his
wife, titled En Nizhalai Pirindha
Ninaivugal, was published in a literary journal Iniya Udhayam a couple of months ago.
At
present, he his writing a novel and he says, “I am writing to create a
world filled with love. Only through kindness, humanity will live forever
and this is my message.”
Courtesy: The New Indian Express
