Gnanakoothan


R. Ranganathan, known professionally as Gnanakoothan, was an Indian poet. Writing in Tamil, he was the author of Anru veru kizhamai, Suriyanukku Pinpakkam, Kadarkaraiyil Sila Marankal, Meendum Avarkal, and Pencil Padangal. He was one of the modern Tamil poets in Tamil literature, and a regular contributor to topical columns in Tamil periodicals such as Kalki, Kalachuvadu and Uyirmai. He was one of the founder-editors of the little magazine Kacatathapara along with N. Krishnamurthy, Sa. Kandasamy, and N. Muthusamy. He started and ran Gavanam for a brief period. He was also one of the editors of Zha, along with Atmanam and R. Rajagopalan. He contributed to several little magazines including Maiyam, Vrutcham, and Kanaiyazhi. His works also appeared in little magazines like Illakkiya Vattam of Ka. Na. Subramaniam and C. Mani's Nadai, in which his poems appeared first. His works are known for their social satire. He died on July 27, 2016 at the age of 78.

Career

He entered the field of poetry through the poem Prachanai. He has been writing poems since 1968. Antru Veru Kilamai, Sooriyanukku pinpakkam, Kadarkariyil Sila Marangal and Meendum Avargal are his famous works. In 1998 a collection of poems Gnanakoothan kavithaigal was published.

Works

He was one of the Tamil writers involved in the making of the film Marudhanayagam alongside Tamil writers Puviarasu and Sujatha.