Nirmala Lakshman: “We definitely are more accepting of people from outside”

What was the process of writing the book?

I think it all came from a sense of not knowing and wanting to know. We have grown up in an anglicized world, but at the same time, we are very conscious of our Tamil heritage.Writer Ashokamitran once told me, start from where you belong.So, I thought, let me start with myself. About being a Tamil in this time, and being exposed to the world and educated in another language. So, the process in that sense was absolutely one of discovery. I read extensively and started going to places to understand the lived experience of people. Dr Vedachalam, senior archaeologist and epigraphist, who helped me a lot said don’t just write about the kings. Write about the life of ordinary people. The strange thing is a lot of Tamil artisans, crafts people and writers and poets were anonymous. And they produced splendid things. The book is a non-academic account of The Tamils, for people who are interested in knowing.

Can you tell us a bit about how the Tamil identity is linked with language, as well as the long-standing tensions with Hindi?

During the Sangam era, language was not an emotional thing. It was a practical tool of communication, to speak about love, heroism, war, and nature. But I think the emotional attachment to Tamil grew with time, particularly after the Jains and Buddhists came. Their communication was through the local language. The Bhakti saints – Alwars and Nayanmars – also realized that Sanskrit was alienating a lot of people. They went from temple to temple singing in Tamil and the local people were drawn into it.

As for the tension with Hindi, it is a long standing one.

The Dravidian movement was a key pivotal point which turned people’s notions towards the needs to preserve Tamil. It started as an anti-Brahmin movement because they felt that music, literature and good jobs have been cornered between the British and the Brahmins.

There has always been a huge resistance to Hindi imposition, starting with the state’s leaders CN Annadurai and M Karunanidhi, and they ensured that they beat Hindi back, while pushing for English as a link language.

Among the most charming details is the history of iconic foods – idli, dosa and sambar. It was fascinating to read about their genesis. In a world where othering is so common, what do these now Tamil foods symbolise?

Merchants and traders played a great role in bringing about the assimilation of various cultural traits. Travel and trade, which was inherent in Tamil culture, contributed hugely to the introduction of new foods. Even some of the vegetables we use are an import. We never had the likes of chilli, tomato and potato. All of that came later. The Thanjavur Maratha court too played a part in the evolution of our cuisine and art. It was not unlike what happened in Hyderabad. There was a syncretic culture in most of India, which unfortunately has been trampled on by current day politics.

The book spotlights syncretism: Thuluka Nachiyar in Srirangam, Nawab Ali Wallajah’s contributions to temples and churches, and the Arab traders coming to the Tamil coast not to capture but to barter. How did all this shape the experience of the south?

We were not directly attacked by any major force in the South. And in the book, I’ve dealt with the conflicting legacy of Malik Kafur’s presence in south India. Starting from the Sangam era – and especially in the Tirukkural written by Thiruvalluvar -- there’s always been a philosophical underpinning. I’m not saying it’s an exceptional trait among the Tamils, but we definitely are more accepting of people from outside. During the Sangam times, that was the Yavanas, traders. Subsequently, the Portuguese, Dutch, the English came to the region. All of this shaped the Tamil spirit of tolerance.

There’s a wealth of information about the Brahmins and their land ownership from Pandya and Chola periods in the book. And the invisibilisation of the marginalised castes from the records. Could you comment on the long shadow of generational privilege in the context of Tamil Nadu’s reservation policies?

When the Brahmins received land from the kings, they did not cultivate it themselves. They used farmers from different communities. There was no rebellion against it, except from small groups. The privilege became very obvious and political when the brahmins cornered all the opportunities – since they were already educated – and became assimilated with the British.

For a century or more they held the top jobs. It was only with the birth of the Dravidian consciousness that there was an attempt to dismantle this privilege. It succeeded only by political will and organized resistance. Reservations were very necessary to correct the historical oppressions.

Tamil Nadu has benefitted hugely from reservations, creating technocrats and bureaucrats. But as interviews recorded in the book will tell you, Dalits have not benefitted proportionately.

The role of Tamils in the freedom struggle is not as well-known as many of the revolts in other parts of the country. The book points out, many - including ideas of Gandhiji’s Satyagraha - were sparked in the region. Why is this so?

The freedom struggle was a pan-Indian movement, and there were as many here as you would find in any other part of the country.

There was cultural, literary and political resistance by the Marudu brothers, Veerapandia Kattabomman, VO Chidambaram Pillai, Subramania Bharati, Ambujammal and many others. The Dravidian movement was parallel to the freedom struggle but it never tried to suppress it. With Gandhi’s entry, it became a mass movement, but for some reason the fantastic involvement from the south hasn’t been highlighted as much.

How hard was it to spotlight women?

I think it’s very hard, because it’s not been documented enough. And it’s a very big lacunae in readings and writings on history that we do not focus on the contribution of women as artists, as creative people, as literary scholars and historians. I had to struggle, remember and find. Because it is so easy to say Rajaraja Chola did great things and not acknowledge that his great aunt Sembian Mahadevi was a great influence.

There’s not enough recorded about what women did, be it Dr Minakshi, a path breaking historian of the Pallava era or Chellamal (Bharati’s wife). They remain in the shadows.

Besides them, there were hundreds of women, within households who protested against being branded as widows. Or supported widow remarriage. They fought to educate themselves and went to college. I wanted to find out more. But I couldn’t because they are really not visible anywhere. Someday, I have to go and find these stories.

Can you tell us a bit about your favourite discovery?

The cave paintings at Jain heritage site Sittanavasal were remarkable. And Vettuvankovil (temple) on the Kazhugu Malai hillside astonished me. You don’t see it at first; and when you do, this early Pandya temple inside a crater, takes your breath away. Since it is unfinished, you don’t know the final intention. I’ve visited it thrice in five years, during the research for the book!

Aparna Karthikeyan is an independent journalist and author.