I can only write, I am not an activist: Author Perumal Murugan

Once having declared himself 'dead' as a writer, the 57-year-old Tamil author's English translations are gaining popularity among readers, which comes to him as a surprise.

Jaipur: For the 57-year-old Tamil author, who once publicly announced that the writer in him is dead, more people liking the English translations of his works that are about village life is a "big surprise".

And five more works of Perumal Murugan, who asserts that he is not an activist, are set to be translated into English in the coming months, including fiction, non-fiction and short stories.

"Translation is not new to me... Readers have increased and they are liking it. That is a big surprise for me. I write about life in villages of Tamil Nadu and that a common audience likes it, that is a big surprise," Murugan, whose novel 'Fire Bird' won last year's JCB Prize for Literature, told PTI.

In a free wheeling chat in Tamil on the sidelines of the recently concluded Jaipur Literature Festival, Murugan patiently answered all the questions but politely refused to take queries related to current politics.

"Arasiyal veendamme (let's not talk about politics)," the mild-mannered Murugan said.

The author of more than 50 works in Tamil spanning across different genres, is clear about his priority, which is writing and connecting with society. "I can only write... I am not an activist," he stressed.

In Tamil, he has written around 15 non-fiction books. His first non-fiction work translated into English 'Amma', which is about his mother, was published a few years back.

According to him, Penguin is going to publish five of his books in English, including three non-fiction works, one short stories collection and one novel.

One is about his experience working at a cinema theatre during his young days. At that time, his father had a shop at the theatre.

After working as a Tamil professor for more than two decades, Murugan is now spending time writing and doing agriculture in his native place Nammakal in Tamil Nadu.

"As a writer, what message can I give? I can only write and my relationship with society is through my writings. I am not an activist and I cannot go to another field and work. Basically, I am a writer. When I want to tell or share something with the society, that I will do through my writings," he said.

In response to a query on writing in the current circumstances, Murugan said that fiction seems more safe as it gives more freedom.

"In non fiction, you express your views directly but in fiction, you don't have to do that. Fiction gives more freedom. There you can show the characters as something that happens somewhere else and so many things can be explored. It can even be written in a way that people don't understand things directly," he opined.

With a smile, he was also quick to add that fiction created a lot of problems, referring to the huge controversy related to one of his works following which he had even announced that the writer in him is dead.

His novel 'Pyre' was in the long list for the International Booker Prize 2023.

In describing him, the Booker Prizes website said, "in 2015, Murugan declared himself 'dead' and announced his retirement from writing following protests, litigation and the burning of his book Maadhorubaagan by caste-based groups.

At a court case in 2016 centred on the book, the judge ruled: "Let the author be resurrected to what he is best at. Write." For Murugan, the statement was both 'a command and a benediction' to resume writing".

Going forward, Murugan in the interview said he does not have big plans. "There are a lot of ideas and let's see what can be written."

"As a writer, I will ask readers to read more. Literature will help us in a big way to understand our lives," he signed off.