This piece is inspired from the character of Vandiyadevan from the Tamil novel, Ponniyin Selvan which was written by the Tamil writer Kalki Krishnamurthy.
Dear Prince of the Vannar clan Vandiyadevan,
When you started out during the eighteenth day of the Aadi month(one of the months in the Tamil calendar) on your journey to Tanjore to hand over the letter written by the Chola prince Aditya Karikalan to his sister, the intelligent and charming Princess Kundavai as per the Karikalan’s instructions in the first chapter of the Tamil novel Ponniyin Selvan, I also started on a very fascinating and extended journey with many twists and turns about the fate of the Chola empire along with you. Moreover, the icing on the cake was that from the first chapter itself, I became your fan.
It was travelling with you to the palace of the Kadamboor king Samburaiyar and also unexpectedly peeping into the room of the palace that I also got to know, along with you, of the huge political conspiracy that was being plotted by the small kings of the Chola empire about the next emperor of the Chola empire. My jaws even dropped further when I realized whom was orchestrating this conspiracy (or had done so after being influenced by someone). I was wondering how could he have done such a great betrayal to the ailing emperor Sundara Chola who has always great respect and always reposed immense faith in him, although he might have his reasons behind plotting about installing someone else as the next Chola emperor as he does not like Sundara Chola’s sons Prince Karikalan and the darling of the Chola people, Prince Arulmozhi Varman alias Ponniyin Selvan.
I was also catching my breath and prayed that you should not be caught by anyone as you had known about this conspiracy which was actually shrouded in absolute secrecy. I was also wondering about how would you convey this news to the people concerned such as the princes and the princess Kundavai but you had found out a way to convey this news to them very smartly without any of the conspirators getting to know of it. I really liked it a lot.
Some of the main qualities about you which I admire the most are your courage, intelligence, conviction and loyalty to your best friend Prince Karikalan and to the Chola empire. Despite numerous dangers and obstacles which you had face during your numerous trips in the novel, such as while travelling to Sri Lanka to bring back Prince Arulmozhi to Tanjoreor to prevent Prince Karikalan from meeting with Periya Pazhuvettaiyar’s(the chancellor and treasurer of the Chola empire)wife Nandini in Kadamboor(both according to Kundavai’s instructions), you had never lost hope and deterred from your assigned task or goal. Rather on the contrary, you had always tried your level best to accomplish them.
Another great quality of yours was that you were never scared to embrace even death if it seemed like so during the unexpected dangerous situations which you had faced in the novel, which I really marvelled at and also wished that I should also imbibe it. So, a big salute to you for that! The other aspect which I liked about you was that despite being one of the key figures and heroes of the novel, how were you conceived and characterized as a common human figure with strengths and weaknesses by the ace Tamil writer Kalki Krishnamurthy (the author of Ponniyin Selvan).
Despite it seeming like ironic, you also had the weaknesses of being scared of water, also having sometimes to lie to people to achieve you had intended and also being a little impatient and rash sometime. One of the main reasons behind you getting into dangers and hostile situations in the novel was also due tothese weaknesses.
However, like every other human being, you also had found a way to overcome these weaknesses during the course of the novel and you had also evolved from the adventurous and person to a bit more mature and responsible individual, which was evident from the way how you had intelligently told Prince Karikalan about who was Pazhuvur queen Nandhini really was and also many other essential details succinctly, without revealing how you had come to know of them.
A major factor which had aided in the development of your character was your meeting with Prince Arulmozhi in Sri Lanka and how you had eventually decided to tell the truth and also refrain working for the members of the royal dynasty(as they might involve lies and deception) at a given point. This was due to the reason that you had been enamoured by the latter and also of some of his qualities such as honesty and integrity, after meeting and befriending him.
Along with this, although Ponniyin Selvanis a story about the Chola empire, it is also quintessentially the story of your life and how it was radically transformed due to the confusions and external and internal conspiracies which were lurking around the mighty Chola empire. It was also about some of the new relationships that you had forged throughout the course of the novel, such as becoming best friends with Prince Arulmozhi and also winning Princess Kundavai’s heart. It was similar to the life story of an ordinary human being and also reiterated the important fact that life is and will always remain a roller-coaster ride for everyone. This was one of the aspects of the novel whichmade me to relate with you and also to read it voraciously.
I also admired how despite the odds and also being lured by the Pandiya conspirators to come and join them when they had promised a lot of benefits to you, you instantly declined and was always unwaveringly loyal to the Chola empire. Another aspect of yours which I had admired while reading the novel was that you had managed not to be enticed and influenced by the captivating and yet sly Nandini, unlike some of the other people in the novel such as the Pallava prince Parthipendran and the Kadamboor prince Kandhamaran(also one of your close friends). Rather on the other hand, you had always escaped from her whenever you had met her, being unscathed both physically and mentally. You were one of the few people besides the commander-in-chief of the Tanjore city and Periya Pazhuvettiayar’s brother Chinna Pazhuvettaiyar and Prince Arulmozhi who belong to this category.
I also liked how did you, when faced with unexpected dangers such as getting caught in Periya Pazhuvettaiyar’s treasury room and when you were caught in trouble in the Kadambur palace, you did not buckle down and instead thought with a calm and cool head and thus escaped tactfully from these situations, often aided by people as your dear friend Aazhvarkadiyan and Princess Manimegalai(Kadambur king’s daughter). This is a quality of yours which I learnt from you when I was reading the novel and I also felt that everyone should possess this quality when they are stuck in danger.
In addition to this, it was through by accompanying and travelling you on your great adventures both nationally and internationally that I learnt a lot about many of the places in Tamil Nadu such as Tanjore, Thirupurambiyam and Pazhayarai and also aboutsome of thecities such as Anuradhapura and Manthai(also known as Manthottam in Tamil ) in Sri Lanka, which were under the jurisdiction of the Chola empire back then, while reading the novel. I also got to see and learn more about the structure, organization and also the architecture of the houses and streets in the Chola cities while reading the novel. Thus, a big thank-you for this! I will always be your great fan and you will be one of my favourite characters from the novel along with Prince Arulmozhi, Poonguzhali and the Prime Minister of the Chola empire Aniruddha Brahmarayar.I am very excited to see the Tamil actor Karthi playing your role in the film adaptation of the novel, which is being helmed by the famous director Mani Ratnam and which will hit the big screens next year!
Thanking you,
yours sincerely,
Ramesh.
By Karuppiah Saravanapperumal
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