CHENNAI: Chief Minister M K Stalin on Tuesday inaugurated the Tamil Semmozhi exhibition as part of the Semmozhi Naal celebrations. The birth anniversary of former Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, June 3, is being celebrated as Semmozhi Naal.
The exhibition, which is on at Kalaivanar Arangam, showcases a rare collection of photographs of Karunanidhi, old editions of classical Tamil works, palm-leaf manuscripts giving details about the evolution of Tamil language, literature and civilisation through artefacts showing the antiquity of Tamil civilisation.
An official release said the exhibition has been extended till June 9 so that the public and students from schools and colleges could view it free of cost. The exhibition features include the history of classical Tamil, scripts from the Indus valley and Tamil Nadu symbols, Sangam-era inscriptions, pottery with Tamil inscriptions, details of Thirvalangadu copper plates, hero stone inscription from Keezh Mukkuttoor, Kalaiganr Karuvoolam with digital interactive features, a list of nationalised works of Karunanidhi, etc.
As part of the Semmozhi Naal celebrations, the government will also be organising literary competitions, including oratorical contests, contests on writing poetry, quiz programmes, moral storytelling events, etc.
Stalin presented the Kalaignar Karunanidhi Classical Tamil Award for 2025 to Tamil scholar Dr Thayammal Aravanan. The award carried `10 lakh and a citation. The CM also released two new books published by the Central Classical Tamil Institute. Tamil scholars M Chakkaravarthi, R Mohanasundaram, Bhanumathi alias Aathira Mullai, A Idayageetham Ramanujam, and N Sundari were also given enhanced financial aid.
The chief minister also released a compilation of the achievements of the DMK government in the past four years. Copies of the work were received by VCK president Thol Thirumavalavan, MDMK general secretary Vaiko, CPI state secretary R Mutharasan, IUML president K M Khader Mohideen and TNCC president K Selvaperunthagai. The compilation also has articles written by senior journalists and experts in various fields.
The chief minister, in a post on his X handle, said Semmozhi Naal is being celebrated to remember the leader who was instrumental in securing the classical status to the Tamil language and the one who led Tamil Nadu for five decades as a pioneering state of the country. Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, in his X post, recalled the achievements of Karunanidhi during his tenure as the chief minister of the state.