TIRUCHY: An avid magazine collector from Tiruchy, Thi. Ma. Saravanan, who had about 6,000 Tamil magazines to his name, passed away on Friday evening due to kidney problems. He breathed his last in Tiruchy Government Hospital and is survived by his wife, Anandhi. The oldest magazine in his collection Janavinodhini dated as far back as 1883 while he also had a rare copy of Subramania Bharathi’s Chakkaravarthini, a monthly publication for women (1905).
For Saravanan (56), a resident of KK Nagar, his life revolved around learning and collecting Tamil magazines. For every new place he visited, his first task was trying to find a copy of the local Tamil magazine. Recalling his passion for magazines, long-time friend VM Somasundaram said, “He started collecting magazines when he was 20 years old.
At that time, he was working in an old bookshop and that is where his passion for magazines started. He was always on a quest to find more magazines. I have witnessed several researchers and PhD scholars visiting to find references from his collection.” Somasundaram has been friends with Saravanan for the past 25 years. He added Saravanan had written three books on Tamil magazines and published several articles on the subject.
Saravanan was also a popular figure among political activists and writers and was associated with Tamil movements. “Earlier, he was involved in the business of binding books. Out of his interest, he immersed himself in collecting magazines. He collected all magazines and organised them in a professional manner,” said PR Arachezhilan, who runs Naalai Vidiyum magazine.