![]() The Tiruppugazh Padi Vizha there soon became famous. To him Murugan was the supreme arbiter and he encouraged people to spend New Year’s Eve at Tiruttani instead. In his time, it was customary for lawyers to call on Judges on New Year’s Day. Perusing them, Krishnaswami Iyer became a lifelong devotee of the work. The second was the gifting by PN Appuswami, the pioneering writer on science in Tamil, of two volumes of the Tiruppugazh. The first was his devotion to VallimalaiSwamigal who was himself an exponent of these verses. A lifelong devotee of Lord Murugan, who to him was an ever-present companion, two occurrences furthered his passion for the Tiruppugazh. He was blessed with a powerful voice that aided him in Court and also in his hobby. Today he is better remembered as the maternal uncle of Rukmini Devi Arundale- her mother Seshammal being his sister. But what made him a legend in his lifetime was his passionate renditions of the Tiruppugazh. In keeping with the humorist SVV’s parody of Mylapore lawyers – their days are filled with court cases and in the evenings they wear sacred ash and rudraksham and participate in bhajans – Krishnaswami Iyer became an active participant in congregational singing. A 1928 pic of the Tiruppugazh group at Bala Vilas. Between 19, at the invitation of Sir CP Ramaswami Iyer, he served as Chief Justice of Travancore State and after Independence reverted to practice in Madras. His illustrious neighbours were members of the legal Vembakkam clan and also Sir S Varadachariar. ![]() TM Krishnaswami Iyer’s career graph was reflected in the way he moved residences – from various places in Mylapore to the palatial Bala Vilas he built in a culde sac off Royapettah High Road. Within a decade or two, this trio had cornered practice in the Court to such an extent that it was said that you had to be named Krishnaswami in order to succeed at the Madras Bar. He enrolled in the High Court of Madras in 1907, which was the year when two others, Alladi Krishnaswami Iyer and KV Krishnaswami Iyeralso joined. He then graduated from the Madras Christian College with a BA degree before qualifying in law in 1905. Having studied at the Pachayappa’sSchool, Kanchipuram, Krishnaswami Iyer joined the Pachayappa’s College, Madras for his intermediate. His ancestors were from neighbouring Akhilandapuram and proudly bore the suffix of Rayar, a title that had been given for services to the East India Company. Krishnaswami Iyer was born in 1885 into a culturally rich family of Thiruvayyaru and the T in his name stood for that hallowed village’s other name – Thiruvadi. It is no wonder that the Mahaperiyava of Kanchi made a word play out of his initials and conferred on him the title Tiruppugazh Mani. One among these was TM Krishnaswami Iyer, who combined a highly successful career in law with a passion – the propagation of the Tiruppugazh. Apart from being deeply involved in their profession, they left their mark in areas such as social uplift, culture, education and of course the freedom struggle. The first half of the last century was a time when lawyers of the High Court of Madras were known for their multifarious interests. TM Krishnaswami Iyer, courtesy his family archives
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |