Nanjanagudu Tirumalamba (1887–1982; also known as Nanjangud Tirumalamba) was a Mysorean author, newspaper editor, publisher, and printer. She was born on 25 March 1887 in Nanjanagudu,

Mysore Mysore ( ), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Mysore district and Mysore division. As the traditional seat of the Wadiyar dynasty, the city functioned as the capital of the ...

(then under

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

) to Venkatakrishna, a lawyer, and Alamelamma. While her native language was

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 ...

, she also spoke

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of South India ** Telugu literature, is the body of works written in the Telugu language. * Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Tel ...

and

Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...

. She died in Nanjanagudu,

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

on 31 August 1982.

Early life

Tirumalamba was married at the age of 10 and widowed at 14. Retrieved 2016-8-4 Her father, a bibliophile, introduced her to a wide range of literature, including the

Ramayana The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

, and Bhagavatha, as well as plays by authors such as Nanjanagudu Srikanta Shastri, Bellave Somanathayya, and M. Venkatadri Shastri. Her mother died when Tirumalamba was 5 years old.

Career as a teacher

Tirumalamba taught local children at her house, which became known as Mathru Mandira (). She established a newspaper called ''Sanmargadarshini'' for her students. Tirumalamba's personal writings, initially for self-study, were later shared with her students, which encouraged her to expand her writing into various forms, including drama, fiction, stories, and songs.

Career as a writer

Tirumalamba submitted a story to a competition organized by ''Madhuravani'', a monthly magazine from

. The editor, K. Hanuman, visited her home and discovered a collection of her literary works. Impressed by a piece titled ''Vidhava Kartavya'', he published it in ''Madhuravani''. Tirumalamba continued writing, and soon after, established a publication house called ''Sathi Hitaishini''.

Career as a publisher

Tirumalamba started a publishing house, ''Sathi Hitaishini'', which published her first novel, ''Sushile,'' in 1913, which saw four editions and sold over 7000 copies. The publication house also published works by other authors, including ''Sanmarga Granthavali'' by Panyam Sundarashastri and ''Sanmarga Grantha Malika'' by Saraguru Venkata Varadacharya. Other publications included ''Nandini Granthamala'' and ''Science of Decoration'' by Dr. S. N. Narasimhayya, as well as medical books like ''Suksmayurveda Chikitsa Prayoga'' and ''Sarala Unipathi Chikisakata'' by Dr. Srinivas Murthy. Between 1913 and 1916, Tirumalamba authored eleven books, including ''Nabha'', ''Vidyullatha'', and ''Harina''. She authored approximately 28 works in total, including stories, novels, short novels, detective novels, essays, poems, and plays. Her final novel, ''ManiMala'', was published in 1939.

Career as a newspaper editor

Tirumalamba established a monthly magazine, ''Karnataka Nandini'', with the stated intention of supporting women through literature. Contributors included the poet Udupi TulasiBai and Kademgodlu Shankara Bhattaru. A column titled ''Kannada Rannagannadi'' featured advocates of the

Kannada language Kannada () is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, an ...

. Due to a lack of contributors, Tirumalamba used various pen names to fill the magazine's columns, but this practice proved unsustainable, and the magazine eventually ceased publication.

Death and legacy

After her father's death, Tirumalamba's writing shifted towards philosophical themes before ceasing altogether. She died at the age of 95 on 31 August 1982.

Awards, honours, and reception

Several works published by ''Sati Hitaisini'', including ''Matrunandini'', ''Chandravadana'', and ''Ramananda'', received awards from the Madras School Book and Literature Society. The Vidyavardhaka Sangha of Karnataka also honored works like ''Ramananda'' and ''Purnakala''. Tirumalamba's writings received recognition from the governments of

Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...

, and

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

. Her works were used as textbooks in schools across Madras, Mysore, and Bombay for nearly two decades, starting in 1917. In 1980, she was honored by the Rajya Sahitya Academy.

Tirumalamba Award

The Shaswathi institution, founded by C. N. Mangala, presents the Tirumalamba Award to outstanding female writers in honor of Tirumalamba.

Novels

* Sushile (1913) * Nabha * Vidyullata * Viragini * Daksakanye (spy) * Manimala

Drama

* Savitri Charitre * Janaki Kalyana

References

External links

Tirumalamba: the visionary kannada novelist

Nanjangud Tirumalamba, a widow who became a writer, publisher, and more, and reached the pinnacle of success
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nanjanagudu, Tirumalamba 1887 births 1982 deaths Kannada people Writers from Mysore Indian women poets Kannada poets 20th-century Indian poets 20th-century Indian women writers Indian women journalists Indian women editors Indian editors Poets from Karnataka Journalists from Karnataka Indian women publishers Indian publishers (people) Indian printers Businesspeople from Mysore 20th-century Indian businesspeople 20th-century publishers (people) 20th-century Indian journalists Kannada-language journalists Women writers from Karnataka Businesswomen from Karnataka 20th-century Indian businesswomen