CHENNAI: The controversy surrounding Rajinikanth’s comments on Dravidar Kazhagam founder Periyar has led to a spike in the demand for books on the rational leader. At the just-concluded book fair in the city, there was renewed interest in books on Periyar.
Publishers, who participated in the fair, said titles on Periyar were one of the most sought.Suba Veerapandian, founder of Karunchattai Pathipagam, a publication that deals with books on social justice, said sales of books on Periyar jumped by almost two times. “We sold nearly 2,000 books on Periyar in the book fair last year. It touched 3,500 this year. While repeated adverse remarks by various political leaders against Periyar sparked an interest among people, the recent comments of Rajinikanth increased the demand,” he said. Youngsters aged between 25 and 35 searched for books on the leader, he said.
At the golden jubilee celebrations of Tamil magazine ‘Thuglak’ in Chennai last week, Rajinikanth spoke about a rally led by Periyar in Salem in 1971. Rajinikanth had said that “portraits of Rama and Sita without clothes, decorated with garlands of slippers” were carried by people in the rally.
Booksellers and publishers said there was a growing interest among readers to understand the life and philosophy of Periyar. Nagarajan K, Booksellers and Publishers Association of South India vice-president and publisher of Bharathi Puthakalayam, said Periyar was the most-searched title in the online catalogue of the association’s official portal. ‘E V Ramasamy Engira Naan’ was one the most-sold titles on the leader, he said.
New publishers such as ‘Neelam Publications’, who have a range of titles on social reformers and rational leaders, said political awareness among the masses was palpable. Anbu of Neelam Publications said visitors to the book fair wanted to know the veracity of information available on leaders. “We can see a political awareness among the readers who want to understand the depth of these issues,” he said.
Dravidar Kazhagam said the spurt in demand for titles on Periyar was not related to the controversy triggered by Rajinikanth. V Anburaj, general secretary of Dravidar Kazhagam, said books on Periyar have been in high demand for the past two years. “In the current political scenario and crisis, Periyar’s ideas provide a solution,” he said. “There is no link between Rajinikanth’s remarks and sale of books on Periyar,” he said.
Publishers, who participated in the fair, said titles on Periyar were one of the most sought.Suba Veerapandian, founder of Karunchattai Pathipagam, a publication that deals with books on social justice, said sales of books on Periyar jumped by almost two times. “We sold nearly 2,000 books on Periyar in the book fair last year. It touched 3,500 this year. While repeated adverse remarks by various political leaders against Periyar sparked an interest among people, the recent comments of Rajinikanth increased the demand,” he said. Youngsters aged between 25 and 35 searched for books on the leader, he said.
At the golden jubilee celebrations of Tamil magazine ‘Thuglak’ in Chennai last week, Rajinikanth spoke about a rally led by Periyar in Salem in 1971. Rajinikanth had said that “portraits of Rama and Sita without clothes, decorated with garlands of slippers” were carried by people in the rally.
Booksellers and publishers said there was a growing interest among readers to understand the life and philosophy of Periyar. Nagarajan K, Booksellers and Publishers Association of South India vice-president and publisher of Bharathi Puthakalayam, said Periyar was the most-searched title in the online catalogue of the association’s official portal. ‘E V Ramasamy Engira Naan’ was one the most-sold titles on the leader, he said.
New publishers such as ‘Neelam Publications’, who have a range of titles on social reformers and rational leaders, said political awareness among the masses was palpable. Anbu of Neelam Publications said visitors to the book fair wanted to know the veracity of information available on leaders. “We can see a political awareness among the readers who want to understand the depth of these issues,” he said.
Dravidar Kazhagam said the spurt in demand for titles on Periyar was not related to the controversy triggered by Rajinikanth. V Anburaj, general secretary of Dravidar Kazhagam, said books on Periyar have been in high demand for the past two years. “In the current political scenario and crisis, Periyar’s ideas provide a solution,” he said. “There is no link between Rajinikanth’s remarks and sale of books on Periyar,” he said.
courtsy-times of india
