MichaelWhite3 at 04:53, 2 April 2026

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{{Short description|Indian writer and literary critic (born 1954)}}
{{Infobox writer
| name = S. Tamilselvan
| image = Tselvan.jpg
| image_size =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1954|05|27}}
| birth_place = Nagalapuram, [[Thoothukudi district]], Tamil Nadu
| occupation = writer and literary critic
| language = [[Tamil language|Tamil]]
| education =
| alma_mater =
| period =
| genre =
| subject =
| movement =
| notableworks = ''Veyilotu Potu'', ''Tamizh Sirukathaiyin Thadankal''
| spouse = R. Vellathai
| children = 1
| relatives = [[Konangi]] and [[Murugabhoopathy]] (brothers)
| awards = {{bullet list|[[Sahitya Akademi Award]] (2025)|BestStory Award by the Tamil Nadu Government Film Corporation (2008)}}
| signature =
| signature_alt =
| website =
| portaldisp =
}}
'''S. Tamilselvan''' is a Tamil language writer and literary critic from Tamilnadu. He has written more than fifty books, including essays, short stories, and children's literature, on a variety of subjects including literature, culture, education, science, feminism, politics, and history. He received the 2025 [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] in the Literary Criticism category for his work ''Tamizh Sirukathaiyin Thadankal'', critically analyzes Tamil short stories from different generations.

==Biography==
S. Tamilselvan was born on 27 May 1954 in Nagalapuram, [[Thoothukudi district]] of Tamil Nadu.<ref name="vikatan">{{cite news |title=விகடனில் தொடராக வெளிவந்த நூலுக்கு சாகித்ய அகாடமி விருது! |url=https://www.vikatan.com/literature/sahitya-academy-award-winner-satamilselvan |work=vikatan.com |date=16 March 2026 |language=ta}}</ref> His grandfather, [[Madhurakavi Bhaskara Das]], was a playwright and the mentor of [[M. S. Subbulakshmi]], [[S. G. Kittappa]], and [[K. B. Sundarambal]], and his father M. S. Shanmugam was a writer, who wrote on various journals of the Dravidian movement.<ref name="vikatan"/> His mother is Saraswathi.<ref name="vikatan"/> Writer [[Konangi]] and playwright [[Murugabhoopathy]] are Tamilselvan's brothers.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://tamil.samayam.com/latest-news/state-news/ki-ra-award-is-to-be-presented-to-writer-konangi-this-year/articleshow/85764646.cms|title=கோணங்கிக்கு கி.ரா விருது: பரிசுத் தொகை 5 லட்சம்!|website=Samayam Tamil|language=ta|access-date=2026-03-07}}</ref>

Tamilselvan grew up in Nenmeni Mettupatti, Virudhunagar district and completed his schooling.<ref name="Dinakaran">{{cite news |title=தமிழ் சிறுகதையின் தடங்கள் எனும் புத்தகத்திற்கு எழுத்தாளர் ச.தமிழ்ச்செல்வனுக்கு சாகித்ய அகாடமி விருது - Dinakaran |url=https://www.dinakaran.com/news/sahityaakademi-award-book-trails-tamilshortstories-writer-stamilchelvan/ |work=Dinakaran |language=ta}}</ref> He completed his college studies at Kovilpatti.<ref name="Dinakaran"/> Born into a family of writers, he was drawn to reading and later to writing at an early age.<ref name="vikatan"/> His first poem was published in the small magazine ''Neelakkuuil''. His first short story appeared in the journal ''Thamarai''.<ref name="vikatan"/>

In early years Tamilselvan was attracted to [[Gandhism|Gandhian]] ideology.<ref name="Andhimazhai">{{Cite news |last=கவிதாபாரதி |title=எழுத்தும் சமூகமும் |url=https://www.andhimazhai.com/web-series/literature-and-society |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260307055956/https://www.andhimazhai.com/web-series/literature-and-society |archive-date=2026-03-07 |access-date=2026-04-01 |work=Andhimazhai |language=ta}}</ref> He also stated that the character Aravindan of the famous Tamil novel "Kurinjimalar" written by [[Na. Parthasarathy]] was his role model.<ref name="Andhimazhai" /> Inspired by the character’s Gandhian values and patriotic spirit, Tamilselvan even used to dress like him.<ref name="Andhimazhai" />

Inspired by Gandhism and patriotism, he joined the Indian army. There he started reading English books. Poems by [[Kamala Surayya|Kamala Das]], novels by [[Pritish Nandy]], Shasti Pratha and [[Bharati Mukherjee]] were his favorites that time.<ref name="Andhimazhai" />

Unable to adapt to the mechanized discipline of the army, he returned home after a few years and settled in [[Kovilpatti]].<ref name="Andhimazhai" /> At that time, Kovilpatti was the home of many left-wing progressive literary youth, including well-known writers. He too became one of them.<ref name="Andhimazhai" /> He started writing extreme left-wing poetry, and also ran a manuscript magazine called ''Kizhakku''.<ref name="Andhimazhai" />

He joined the postal service as an employee, and attracted towards the trade union activism.<ref name="Andhimazhai" /> Subsequently, he joined the 'Tamil Nadu Murpokku Ezhuthalar Kalaignargal Sangam' (TMMS) and later became its state president.<ref name="Andhimazhai" />

===Personal life===
Tamilselvan is currently living in [[Sivakasi]] with his wife R. Vellathai, a retired Headmaster.<ref name="Dinakaran"/> His son Siddharth lives in Chennai.<ref name="vikatan"/>

==Career==
Initially working in the Postal Department, Tamilselvan later joined the Indian Army and served on the India-China border.<ref name="vikatan"/> Later, he left the army and rejoined the Postal Department.<ref name="vikatan"/>

Also a left-wing thinker affiliated with the [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]], S. Tamilselvan also served as the state secretary and president of the progressive writers and artistes association in the state called 'Tamil Nadu Murpokku Ezhuthalar Kalaignargal Sangam' (TMMS).<ref name="minnambalam">{{cite news |title=எழுத்தாளர் ச. தமிழ்ச்செல்வனுக்கு சாகித்திய அகாதமி விருது - முதல்வர் ஸ்டாலின் வாழ்த்து - Writer Sa Tamil Selvan Sahitya Akademi Award 2025 Tamil Sirukathaiyin Thadangal |url=https://minnambalam.com/writer-sa-tamil-selvan-sahitya-akademi-award-2025-tamil-sirukathaiyin-thadangal/ |date=16 March 2026}}</ref><ref name="vikatan"/> He played a major role in expanding the reach of the association to all corners of the state, thereby attracting a large number of youth to the organization.<ref name="vikatan"/>

He also participated in the ''Arivoli'' (meaning:Light of Knowledge) movement, traveling from village to village to create awareness about the importance of education.<ref name="vikatan"/> For this, Tamilselvan wrote several pamphlets and composed several songs.<ref name="vikatan"/> Eventually, he voluntarily retired from his position in the Postal Department to focus more on these movements.<ref name="vikatan"/>

Tamilselvan also served as the editor of the literary magazine ''Semmalar''.<ref name=":0">{{cite news |title=S. Tamilselvan wins Sahitya Akademi award for literary criticism |url=https://www.thehindu.com/books/s-tamilselvan-wins-sahitya-akademi-award-for-literary-criticism/article70750415.ece |work=The Hindu |date=16 March 2026 |language=en-IN}}</ref>

==Contributions==
Tamilselvan has written more than 50 books, including essays, short stories, and children's literature, on a variety of subjects including literature, culture, education, science, feminism, politics, and history.<ref name="The New Indian Express">{{cite news |title=SA Tamilselvan wins Sahitya Akademi Award for literary criticism |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil-nadu/2026/Mar/17/sa-tamilselvan-wins-sahitya-akademi-award-for-literary-criticism-3 |work=The New Indian Express |date=17 March 2026 |language=en}}</ref> His works range from small pamphlets of about 16 pages to large volumes of up to 1,000 pages.<ref name="The New Indian Express"/>

Tamilselvan's first collection of short stories, ''Veilode Poi'', was released in 1984. The short story ''Veilode Poi'', included in that collection, was adapted into film by film director Sasi under the title ''[[Poo (film)|Poo]]''.<ref name="vikatan"/> For that film, he was awarded the Tamil Nadu Government's Award for Best Story for Film.<ref name="vikatan"/>

As of 2024, of the 52 books of Tamilselvan , apart from ''Iruttu Ennakku Padukku'' (Vasal Publishing), ''Peshatha Peschelam'' (Uyirumai Publishing), ''Modeyaman Kaatruyum Isivana Kadalalaiyum'' (Collection of Stories, Thamizhini Publishing) and ''Naan Pesha Paramundu'' (Vamsi Publishing), the other books that have been published by Bharathi Puthakalayam.<ref name="Hindu Tamil">{{cite news |title=ச.தமிழ்ச்செல்வன் 70: தமிழுக்கும் அறிவுக்குமான தொண்டு |url=https://www.hindutamil.in/news/opinion/columns/1275885-s-tamilchelvan-70-charity-for-tamil-and-knowledge.html |work=Hindu Tamil Thisai |date=7 July 2024 |language=ta}}</ref> Some of his books like ''Namakhana Kutumbam'' [meaning:Our family] and ''Arasiyal Enak Pudikum'' [meaning: I like politics] have seen 27 editions so far.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/> Both these books have sold several lakh copies.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/>

''Namakhana Kutumbam'' [meaning:Our family] is a book that has scientifically explained the historical facts about the origin, development and present state of the family system.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/> The series ''Esappatu'' written by him in the daily ''Hindu Tamil Vekti'' talks about interactions between women and our society.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/> The book ''Theivam Saatchi'' [meaning: God is the witness] tells the stories of more than 60 women who are worshiped as folk goddesses in Tamil land.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/> The book ''Sappatu Ramanin Ninaivalikal'' covers the recipe, taste and variety, starting from the traditional Tamil cuisine to the present-day paratha.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/> But this is not a collection of recipe; The book says that men taking up cooking is the first step in trying to free women.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/>

His work ''Tamizh Sirukathaiyin Thadankal'' [meaning:Traces of the Tamil Short Story] that focus on the history of Tamil short stories, critically analyzes Tamil short stories from V. V. S. Iyer's ''Kulthankarai Arasamaram'', which is widely considered to be the first short story in Tamil.<ref name="The Hindu">{{cite news |title=Tamilselvan receives Sahitya Akademi award |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/tamilselvan-receives-sahitya-akademi-award/article70808601.ece |work=The Hindu |date=1 April 2026 |language=en-IN}}</ref> The book classifies Tamil short stories into 6 main categories manikodi-writing, mass magazines, left-wing thought, Dravidian movement, Dalit and women writers.<ref name="Dinakaran"/> In this book, he compares the works of 57 important short story writers including [[Pudhumaipithan]], [[K. P. Rajagopalan]], [[Jayakanthan]] and [[K. Rajanarayanan]] with their social backgrounds.<ref name="Dinakaran"/> Not just a literary review, this book conveys to the readers the political and economic environment of the time when a work was created.<ref name="Dinakaran"/>

The book ''Kettathal Solla Nerinthath'' includes a collection of interviews with him conducted by journalists and writers.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/> He notes that in response to the questions asked of him, he simply presented the thoughts that came to him at those particular moments.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/> His book Zi''ndabad Zindabad'', describe a trade unionist's experience in politics.<ref name=":0" />

The series ''Pesatha Pachellam'', which he wrote in 'Uiirmai' magazine, has been published as a book with the same title.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/> In this book, in a very emotional mood, he describes the way his life experiences interacted with many of his fellow human beings who have passed away.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/> The book ''Nan Pesa Virumbikiren'' [meaning:I want to talk] features poetic essays on noted artistic figures like [[Frida Kahlo]], [[Ingrid Bergman]], [[Paul Gauguin]], [[Egon Schiele]], and [[Liv Ullmann]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=உமா |first1=வி |title=ச.தமிழ்ச்செல்வனின் 'நான் பேச விரும்புகிறேன்' புத்தக விமரிசனம்! |url=https://www.dinamani.com/book-space/2018/Jan/25/liv-ulmann-and-frida-kahlo-2851142.html |work=தினமணி |date=25 January 2018 |language=Tamil}}</ref> These articles were serially published in the quarterly magazine 'Puthuvisai'.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/>

He has also published a 1000 page two-volume history of the communist movementand empowerment of poor peasants in Thanjavur district, titled ''Thiruppiaditha Varalaru''.<ref name="vikatan"/><ref name=":0" />

==Awards and honors==
Tamilselvan received the 2025 [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] in the Literary Criticism category for his work "Tamizh Sirukathaiyin Thadankal".<ref name="The Hindu"/> He has also been honoured with the Sahitya Akademi Award for his works like ''Veyilodu Poyi'' and ''Valin Solani''.<ref name="minnambalam"/> Best Story Award by the Tamil Nadu Government Film Corporation.<ref name="Hindu Tamil"/>

==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Sahitya Akademi Award For Tamil}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tamilselvan, S.}}

[[Category:1954 births]]
[[Category:living people]]
[[Category:Writers from Tamil Nadu]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Tamil]]
[[Category:People from Thoothukudi district]]
[[Category:Indian Tamil writers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian short story writers]]
[[Category:Indian literary critics]]
[[Category:Indian Marxist writers]]
[[Category:Indian Marxist historians]]

S. Tamilselvan - Revision history

MichaelWhite3 at 04:53, 2 April 2026