Subramania Bharatiyar

On December 11, 1882, in the village of Ettayapuram, Bharati was born to Chinnaswami Subramania Iyer and Lakshmi Ammal. He attended the M.D.T. Hindu College in Tirunelveli with the name Subramania. He was musically and poetically interested from a very young age. After his mother passed away when he was five years old, Bharathi was raised by his father, who encouraged him to study English, perform well in math, and pursue a career in engineering. He was an expert linguist, fluent in Sanskrit, Hindi, Telugu, English, and French, and he had a passing knowledge of Arabic. When he was about 11 years old, the Raja of Ettayapuram recognized his talent for poetry and bestowed upon him the title of "Bharathi," meaning "one blessed by Saraswati," the goddess of learning.

At age 15, he married Chellamma, who was only seven years old. He lost his father when he was sixteen. Bharathi was introduced to Hindu nationalism and spirituality while he was in Varanasi. His perspective was enlarged, and he picked up Hindi, Sanskrit, and English. He also altered his outer appearance. Due to his enthusiasm for Sikhs and the influence of his Sikh friend, he also developed a beard and started wearing a turban. He returned to Ettayapuram in 1901 and began serving as the court poet of the Raja of Ettayapuram for a few years despite having passed an admission exam for a job.

From August to November 1904, he worked as a Tamil instructor at Madurai's Sethupathy High School. [8] Bharathi developed an interest in journalism and the print media of the West during this time because she realized how important it was to stay informed about the outside world. In 1904, Bharathi began working as an assistant editor for the Tamil daily Swadesamitran. He went to the All India Congress meeting in Benaras in December 1905. While returning home, he encountered Sister Nivedita, Swami Vivekananda's spiritual heir. She encouraged Bharathi to appreciate women's rights, and the freedom of women stimulated Bharathi's thinking. He imagined the new woman as an outgrowth of Shakti who would work alongside man to create new earth via joint effort.

He regarded Nivedita as his Guru, along with other greats like Bal Gangadhar Tilak, and wrote songs praising her. He went to the Calcutta meeting of the Indian National Congress, led by Dadabhai Naoiroji, which called for Swaraj and a boycott of British products. With M.P.T. Acharya, he began editing the English newspaper Bala Bharatham in April 1907 and Tamil monthly India. These publications served as a platform for Bharathi's inventiveness, which peaked around this time. Bharathi began to publish his poems in these editions consistently.

Bharathi's subjects ranged from hymns to nationalistic compositions, from meditations on the interaction between God and Man to songs about the French and Russian revolutions. Along with V.O. Chidambaram Pillai and Mandayam Srinivachariar, Bharathi took part in the famous Surat Congress in 1907, which widened the gaps between the various factions of the Indian National Congress by favoring an armed uprising under the leadership of Tilak over a more moderate strategy. With the help of Kanchi Varathachariyar and V. O. Chidambaram Pillai, Bharathi supported Tilak. Tilak openly backed armed opposition to the British.