VILLUPURAM: Veteran writer Annadurai, also known as Vizhi Pa Idhayaventhan, passed away in his hometown Villupuram on Monday due to a kidney disorder. He was 61. He had written Tamil novels, short stories, and articles mostly based on Dalit communities.
Born to a visually-impaired father and a mother who was a manual scavenger, Idhayaventhan worked as an assistant at the municipal office after his mother’s demise, sources said. He published stories on the livelihood and pain of discrimination faced by Scheduled Caste communities while he was still a student.
Since 1980, Idayaventhan wrote more than 50 books. His first work was carried in the monthly Tamil magazine Mana Osai, which he continued to write for till his death, said R Ravikarthikeyan, his close aide.