NE NEWS SERVICE
CHENNAI, DEC 11
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday hailed national poet and freedom fighter Subramanya Bharathi’s vision of independent and empowered women and said his government was inspired by it to ensure woman-led development.
Addressing the International Bharati Festival. https://t.co/paQYLDcj7k
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 11, 2020
He was virtually addressing the International Bharathi Festival to mark the 138th birth anniversary of the famous Tamil poet, hailed as Mahakavi, organised by Vanavil Cultural Centre.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami also paid glowing tributes to Bharathi, reverentially addressed as Bharathiyar.
மகாகவி பாரதியார் அவர்களின் பிறந்தநளையொட்டி மாண்புமிகு பாரதப்பிரதமர் @PMOIndia அவர்கள் தலைமையில் நடைபெற்ற வானவில் பண்பாட்டு மையம் நடத்தும் பன்னாட்டு பாரதி திருவிழாவில் பங்கேற்றதில் மகிழ்ச்சியடைகிறேன். இவ்விழாவில் பாரதி விருதுபெற்ற திரு.சீனி விஸ்வநாதன் அவர்களுக்கு எனது வாழ்த்துகள்! pic.twitter.com/Mg9lbvZBg2
— CMOTamilNadu (@CMOTamilnadu) December 11, 2020
Heaping praise on Bharathi, Modi said it was very ”difficult” to describe him and that he “cannot be linked to any single profession or dimension.” “He was a poet, writer, editor, journalist, social reformer, freedom fighter, humanist and much more. One can only marvel at his works, his poems, his philosophy and his life,” the Prime Minister said.
Modi recalled Bharathi had a ”close” link with Varanasi, which he represents in the Lok Sabha. On Bharathi’s vision on women empowerment, Modi said the poet’s definition of progress had a central role for them. “Mahakavi Bharathiyar’s definition of progress had a central role for women. One of the most important visions was that of independent and empowered women,” Modi said.
He “wrote that women should walk with their heads held high while looking people in the eye. We are inspired by this vision and we are working to ensure woman-led development,” the Prime Minister added. In every sphere of his government’s working, there has been importance given to the dignity of women.
“Today over 15 crore women entrepreneurs are funded by Mudra yojana. They are walking with their heads held high, looking us in the eye and telling us how they are becoming self-reliant,” he said.
“Today, women are becoming part of our armed forces, with permanent commissioning. They are walking with their heads held high and looking us in the eye and filling us with confidence that the country is in safe hands,” he said. Further, the poorest of the poor women, who used to face problems of lack of safe sanitation, were benefited by the government’s 10 crore safe and hygienic toilets, he said.
“They do not have to face problems anymore. They can walk with their heads held high and looking everyone in the eye as Mahakavi Bharathiyar had imagined,” Modi added. “This is the era of new India’s Nari Shakthi (woman power). They are breaking barriers and making an impact. This is new India”s tribute to Subramania Bharathi,” the PM said.
The freedom fighter understood that any society which is divided will not be able to succeed and at the same time he wrote about the “emptiness of political freedom which does not address social inequities and does not address social ills,” Modi added. Today’s youth can learn much from Bharathi “more importantly to be courageous” as “fear was unknown to him,” Modi said, while recalling Bharathi’s famous lines “achamillai achamillai” (I know no fear) lines.
“I see the spirit in young India today. I see this spirit when they are at the forefront of innovation and excellence. India’s startup space is filled with fearless youth who are giving something new to humanity,” he said.
Such a can do spirit will bring wonders for our nation and our planet, he added. While the poet sung songs of the greatness of ancient India, Vedas and Upanishads, our culture and tradition and our glorious past, “at the same time, he also warned us that simply living in past glory is not enough.” The freedom fighter wanted that there should be a spirit of enquiry for progress. “His teachings are a strong reminder to us to remain united and committed to the empowerment of every single individual, especially the poor and the marginalised.”
“There is a lot our youth have to learn from Bharathi. I wish everyone in our country reads his works and is inspired by them,” Modi added. Bharathi in his “short life” of 39 years, wrote so much, did so much, and excelled in so much. “His writings are a guiding light to us towards a glorious future,” Modi said.
Chief Minister Palaniswami described Bharathi as a “multi-faceted personality”, who earned a unique place for himself not just in Tamil literary space, but in the global arena.
“He wrote songs on women”s liberation,” Palaniswami said, adding the freedom fighter had great dreams about an independent India. Meanwhile, the Bharathi Award for the year was awarded to scholar Seeni Viswanathan and Modi praised him for “actively pursuing research” on Bharathi even at the age of 86.
Leader of the Opposition Stalin, praising Bharathiar for invoking the spirit of nationalism, said the then DMK government had nationalised the poet’s house and installed his statue in Chennai
Deputy Chief Minister Panneerselam, Makkal Needhi Maiam-founder Kamal Haasan and others too paid tributes.
Meanwhile, state Fisheries Minister D Jayakumar, along with his Cabinet colleagues P Benjamin and K Pandiarajan, paid floral tributes to a portrait of the poet on the Marina here.
Bharati, born in 1882 in Ettayapuram, was a Tamil writer, poet, journalist and an independence activist.
The Union Territory of Puducherry remembered Tamil poet Subramania Bharathiar on his 138th birth anniversary on Friday. Chief Minister V Narayanasamy paid floral tributes to a statue of the poet. Territorial Assembly Speaker V P Sivakolundhu, Parliamentary secretary K Lakshminarayanan, legislators and leaders of different Tamil outfits also paid tributes. The poet’s house in the heart of the town was acquired by the Puducherry government in the 1970s and a museum and research centre have been housed in the building.
Subrahmanya Bharathi, an icon of national unity: Amit Shah
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday paid rich tributes to revolutionary poet Subramanya Bharathi on the occasion of the latter’s birth anniversary, hailing him as an icon of national unity. My tributes to the great son of Mother India, Mahakavi Subramania Bharathi ji on his Jayanti. A pioneer for women empowerment and an icon of national unity whose patriotic poems were a source of inspiration for the masses during India’s struggle for freedom, he tweeted in English and Tamil. Shah also posted a photo of him garlanding a statue of the multi-faceted Bharathi, who also took part in the freedom struggle.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also paid tributes to the bard and quoted a verse from the latter’s song which lauded farmers, while taking a swipe at the Centre over the farm sector reform laws. “Let’s pay tribute to the great Tamil poet Subramania Bharathiar on his 139th birth anniversary today by withdrawing the anti-farmer laws,” he tweeted. “Let’s salute farmers, Let’s not rest on laurels,” the Congress MP said in the Tamil tweet.
