Tirupur Kumaran – the Tamil patriot
Tirupur Kumaran was a young boy in his late twenties who had a raging, undying warrior spirit in him to fight for his nation. Born in 1904, his life started in the atmosphere of path towards freedom. India, which was much bigger at the time, was at the verge of a divide due to the British. More than breaking through the British rule, it was important to remind the people of India that we’re all one and the differences in our religion and culture give us a significant reason to learn tolerance, respect and become the ideal example of ‘unity in diversity’ for the world to witness. And for that to be imbibed in the hearts of the then falling apart Indians, there was only one thing that would bind us together – the Indian flag.
Tirupur Kumaran was a Tamil boy born in Chennaimalai in Madras, that is presently named Erode in Tamil Nadu. During the British rule, the ‘divide and rule’ had become messy. By dividing Bengal into East and West under the name of ‘administrative reasons’, the British had slyly divided the beautiful, harmonious state on the basis of religion – Hindus and Muslims. Within no time, the effect of this division started to show. Indians, who were once united like inseparable conjoined twins, were now waging wars against each other, weakening their unity, and in turn giving the British an easy way to barge and manipulate Indians even further.
But, great revolutionaries like Mahatma Gandhi were self-aware and intelligent enough to see the pattern and hidden agendas of the British. As a result, he was an open threat to the spineless British. When he conducted a demonstration in Bombay in 1932, he was held captive by the officers. Consequently, his devoted followers were ravenous. They started a protest march. The Indian flag was banned but one of the participants, OKSR Kumaraswamy Mudaliar was proudly, fiercely holding it high in the sky. Later, he got renamed as Tirupur Kumaran.
Kumaran was the founder of the Desa Bandhu Youth Association. On the 11th January, 1932, when the British started lathi charges against the protestors, Kumaran didn’t leave the premises. The British cops went down hard. They started thrashing all the protestors, and Kumaran was caught in the beatings. Though he succumbed to injuries, he was found dead holding the flag.
Like Tirupur Kumaran, we have countless such revolutionaries and freedom fighters who dedicated each and every breath towards the independence of our country. From 1900 to 1947, the youth was filled with motivation to win our land back. The British, who ruled India for centuries were finally kicked out by the collective struggles of these unsung heroes.
They’re the reason we’re breathing freely today. Hence, the entertainment industry must take conscious steps towards bringing their struggles to light. Movies are the easiest way to convey a message, a story to the public. In today’s era, especially in India, cinema is the biggest platform. Filmmakers have the power to speak about such important personalities through biopics.
This Independence Week, Filmify is making the effort to bring to you the stories of 2 revolutionaries every day until August 15th, half of it dedicated to female patriots. A total of 12 legends, 6 males and 6 females will be spoken about through the ‘Unsung Heroes Series’ exclusively on Filmify. To read about each one of them, stay tuned for latest updates!