T.U. Subramaniam (1924-1968), also known as Maniam, was an illustrator for

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

magazines, known for his reconstructions of the past in illustrations for popular historical fiction.

Biography

Maniam learned to draw at a young age by watching his uncle Lingayyah sketch. He studied at a school in

Mylapore Mylapore (also spelt Mayilapur), or Thirumayilai, is a neighbourhood in the central part of the city of Chennai, India. It is one of the oldest residential parts of the city. The locality is claimed to be the birthplace of the celebrated Tamil ...

, Chennai, and later at School of Arts, Chennai under Devi Prasad Roy Choudhury. While still a student, he was introduced to

Kalki Krishnamurthy Ramaswamy Krishnamurthy (9 September 1899 – 5 December 1954), better known by his pen name Kalki, was an Indian writer, journalist, poet, critic and Indian independence activist who wrote in Tamil. He chose the pen-name "Kalki", the future i ...

, the celebrated novelist and editor of Kalki magazine. Impressed by his work, Kalki urged the young artist to leave his studies and work with him. Maniam thus came to work with Kalki. For his guru and guide, he illustrated the serialized novels

Sivagamiyin Sapatham ''Sivagamiyin Sapatham'' (, ', , literally 'The vow of Sivagami') is a Tamil historical novel written by Kalki Krishnamurthy, first serialized in Kalki magazine during January 1944 June 1946, and published as a book in 1948. Along with Ponniy ...

set in the

Pallava The Pallava dynasty existed from 275 CE to 897 CE, ruling a significant portion of South India, the Deccan, also known as Tondaimandalam. The Pallavas played a crucial role in shaping in particular southern Indian history and heritage. The ...

kingdom, and the classic

Ponniyin Selvan ''Ponniyin Selvan'' () is a Tamil language historical fiction novel by Indian author Kalki Krishnamurthy. It was first serialised in the weekly editions of ''Kalki'', a Tamil magazine, from 29 October 1950 to 16 May 1954 and later integrated ...

depicting the

Chola The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...

age. Maniam's illustrations for the latter classic employed a variety of techniques and mediums, from pen & ink to gouache and watercolour. Maniam's visualization of the Tamil classical past was much admired in his time, and his depictions of

Bharatanatyam ''Bharatanatyam'' is a Indian classical dance form that came from Tamil Nadu, India. It is a classical dance form recognized by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas of Hinduism and Jainism.< ...

postures drew praise from noted classical dancers such as

Padma Subrahmanyam Padma Subrahmanyam (born 4 February 1943, in Madras), is an Indian classical Bharatanatyam dancer. She is also a research scholar, choreographer, teacher, Indologist and author. She is famous in India as well as abroad; several films and documen ...

.Maniam travelled widely with Kalki to study and sketch the art of Ajanta, Ellora, Hampi, Badami, Mamallapuram and Thanjavur. When Kalki's

Parthiban Kanavu '' Parthiban Kanavu '' (, , lit. Parthiban's dream) is a Tamil language, Tamil novel written by Kalki Krishnamurthy. Details The story is a sequel to Sivagamiyin Sapatham and a curtain-raiser to Ponniyin Selvan. In 2004, Nirupama Raghavan p ...

(1960) was filmed, Maniam was the obvious choice for art director. He also designed costumes for a few other films. Maniam died in 1968. His only son T.S. Loganathan, alias Maniam Selvan (1950- ) is a leading illustrator in Tamil magazines.

Bibliography

*''Ponniyin Selvan'' by Kalki Krishnamurthy, illustrated by Maniam. (Reissued by Vikatan with Maniam'
original illustrations

References

External links

Maniam Tribute siteTalk by Maniam Selvan
on Tamil illustrators, including Maniam
Kalki Online interview with Maniam Selven about his father Maniam
Indian illustrators Tamil artists Artists from Chennai 20th-century Indian male artists {{India-artist-stub