The 142nd birth anniversary of the Dravidian stalwart Periyar E.V.Ramsamy was celebrated across the state on September 17, 2020. But many of the men in black shirts, who were activists in Periyar's social movement Dravidar Kazhagam, are sure to have forgotten this 90-year-old Perumal Jayaraj, who passed away on September 27, 2019 - the same month that witnessed his leader's 142nd anniversary.
The 142nd birth anniversary of the Dravidian stalwart Periyar E.V.Ramsamy was celebrated across the state on September 17, 2020. But many of the men in black shirts, who were activists in Periyar's social movement Dravidar Kazhagam, are sure to have forgotten this 90-year-old Perumal Jayaraj, who passed away on September 27, 2019 - the same month that witnessed his leader's 142nd anniversary.
An undaunted activist in the Dravidar Kazhagam and correspondent of its mouthpiece, Viduthalai, over 60 years ago, Perumal took part in various protests organized by the iconoclastic leader and was jailed many times. Perumal, until he breathed the last, cherished a letter, which he wrote to his wife from Coimbatore Central Prison in 1958. Citing from the Tamil classics Silapathikaram, Purananuru, and Thirukural, he explained to his wife the worth of being a social activist.
Despite being a follower of Periyar, Perumal at a later period, joined Congress, admiring the national party's selfless leader and former chief minister of the Madras Presidency, Kamaraj.
Perumal, in his later days, took a trip down memory lane as he browsed through the archives of Viduthalai and revisited the articles penned by him and the news items published about his arrests and releases in the 1950s,
“When I recently met the Dravidar Kazhagam leader K Veeramani at Periyar Thidal, Chennai, he was surprised to see me, since he was under the wrong impression that I had been dead for many years!" Perumal said to this writer some four years before his demise.
‘The widower, who was living at Muthukurrisi in Palakkad district of Kerala, had once been to his daughter’s home at Sulur in Coimbatore. His only daughter, a 61-year-old homemaker, was named by Periyar EVR as ‘Arivukan’ (eye for knowledge) when she was born to her Tamil father and Malayalee mother, Karthikayini Kutti, a homeopath.
“Later, Periyar even sold me his Vauxhall Wyvern at a cheaper price, saying that the car could be useful for my doctor wife, who, in those days, used to visit many patients in their homes.”‘ Perumal said.
A native of Oddanchathram in the present-day Dindigul district, Perumal could not pursue schooling beyond class 5 due to stressful familial situations. However, with his passion for acting, he left for Salem, visited the Modern Theatres, and sought an opportunity to work on the silver screen.
"Rajagopal, a friend of mine, was working in the Modern Theatres as an assistant director for the 1952 Tamil film Valayapathi. But I was told there that he had gone to Coimbatore for shooting in Sriramulu studio,” informed Perumal.
Though the octogenarian recollected it as ‘Sriramulu studio’, it was out of his natural admiration for the yesteryear Tamil film doyen Sriramulu Naidu of Coimbatore. However, Perumal, in a jiffy, recognizes the studio's real name as ‘Pakshiraja Studios’ soon after this writer chipped in. It may be noted that the studio run by Sriramulu Naidu in Coimbatore, produced many box office hits including Malaikallan(1954), Maragatham (1959), and Kalyanin Kanavan (1963).
“As I was unwilling to return to Oddanchathram, I got down from the bus in the middle at Tiruchengode. In the beginning, I even worked as a load man in the vegetable market and a clerk in a bus ticket booking service. Later, I set up a petty shop and sold newspapers including Malai Murasu, DinaThanthi, Nava India, and Viduthalai. In due course, when I became an area reporter for these dailies, I gained more knowledge about society and joined the Dravidar Kazhagam.” detailed Perumal.
Perumal, who later became the local secretary of the movement in Tiruchengode of the Kongu region, recollected how he called Periyar affectionately as 'Ayya' while the rationalist leader beckoned him as ‘Perumalu’. The octogenarian also treasured a few copies of the popular Tamil magazine Kuyil edited by famed Tamil poet Bharathidasan. He had also contributed articles to Kuyil on the eradication of caste. Besides, in his book Valluvar Vazhiyil, Perumal narrates how he accompanied Bharathidasan and shared the dais with him when the great poet came to address a meeting in Tiruchengode.