கழக ஆட்சியர் வ.சு.வரலாறு
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cultureof the Tamil country. Thus there have been almost 20 conferences (at Tirunelveli, Madras and Madurai) on classics like pathuppattu, Nattrinai, Ettuthohai, Kalithohai, Purananooru, Theshorter epics and so on, and the lecturesgiven and the papers presented have been collected and published by the Kazhagam. As for the festivals, there was the first Tiruvalluvar Vizha at Pachayappa's College in 1935, amemorable event. Othershave follwed, theannual Maraimalai Adigal festivals, periodic festivals for book-releases or in commemoration of particular poetes and literary celebrities, seminarson select themes, the festival in 1977 in connection with Senbthamil SElvi's golden junbilee - these and other vixhas, carefully planned and organish\ed with every attention to detail by Va Su and his collegues, hav le done their best ot keep the Flame of Tamil letters and culture alive and aloft.
Aside from his manifold activities directed towards the realisations of the far aims of the Kazhagam and its connected institutions, VA Suis knownin his own right as a writer, especially of books for children. He wrote for his children first, and his books have since become a legacy for all children, Besides, the kazhagam has sponsored the publication of about 300 books for children. For Va Su the past is his foundation, the present the arena of activity, and the future the threatre of his dreams and hopes and plans. He was one of the spirits behind the Tamil Protection SAngam launched in 1937, and he has outlined his 21-point programmed for the conservation and development of Tamil. With his uncanny flair for recognising and enlisting writing talent for engineering effectively the renaissance in Tamil letters, he has been able to build the Kazhagam's massive and may-sided publishing list. He takes a midwife's personal interestin almost every book that appears over the Kazhagam imprint, and he is said to attend to proof- reading even today.
And in sun, how shale we take the measure of the man VA Su or of his work spread over 60 years and in so many directions? Pulavar Illankumaran has gathered together a number of tributes, in prose and in verse, to VA Su by a galaxy
