India pays tribute to Periyar, the founder of the Dravidian movement, on his birthday

Periyar’s life and work as an anti-caste activist and feminist is extremely relevant even today.
India pays tribute to Periyar, the founder of the Dravidian movement, on his birthday
India pays tribute to Periyar, the founder of the Dravidian movement, on his birthday
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September 17 marks the birthday of Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy Naicker, commonly known as Periyar. A social activist, most famously known for establishing the Dravidar Kazhagam and starting the anti-caste Dravidian movement, people from across the country paid tribute to Periyar on Sunday, whose life and work as an anti-caste activist and feminist is extremely relevant even today. 

Periyar was a rationalist, one who believed that caste should be eradicated, and advocated for women’s rights. He is also credited with starting the Self-Respect Movement, in order to achieve a society where disadvantaged castes had equal rights. Both the main political parties in Tamil Nadu, the DMK and the AIADMK, owe their origins to this movement.

He launched the idea of a separate Dravida Nadu, an idea that was later modified down to Tamil Nadu. In fact, his political legacy is still alive today as it was from the DK that the DMK was born, when CN Annadurai went on to launch the party after the Dravidar Kazhagam split.



Tributes poured in on social media for the revolutionary leader on his 139th birth anniversary.

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