Literature is more powerful than history: Su. Venkatesan

Literature is more powerful than merely writing history directly. Sahitya Akademi award-winning writer and Member of Parliament Su. Venkatesan stated that literature created using history as a tool leaves a massive impact.

Speaking on Friday at The Hindu office, Su. Venkatesan shared that he narrates the stories of contemporary people against a historical backdrop. “History is a tool. What happened yesterday is what is happening today as well. Therefore, what difference does it make whether we speak about a 2,000-year-old story or a story of today?” he asked.

His debut novel, Kaval Kottam, which won the Sahitya Akademi award, is an epic work based on the history of Madurai. He explained that there was a specific reason he chose to write it as a novel rather than as a historical work. “Literature is more powerful than a history book. For history, a few pieces of data are enough. But what literature crafts using history as a tool creates an immense impact. Despite numerous history books on the India-Pakistan Partition, the impact and the pain created by a single short story of Manto is immense. That is the power of literature,” he said.

Regarding his second novel, Veerayuga Nayagan Velpari, he mentioned that he expressed all the knowledge he possessed about the Sangam era in various ways throughout the work. “Only when we depict this entire expanse of knowledge—starting from astronomy to maritime wisdom and flora—does the world I portray achieve completion. I created Velpari as a painting drawn using each one of these elements,” he stated.

When asked to what extent historical writers must adhere to real events in their works, Venkatesan explained that established historical truths cannot be altered entirely. “If you completely alter history, the work will not endure. Hence, our artistic liberty lies only in how we reenact the events that took place in history. A battle can be staged as a small affair, or it can be staged on a grand scale. That is what I have done,” he said.

When asked what he considers the better tool for social change—being a writer or being a public representative—he replied, “The impact literature creates and its lifespan are monumental. The relief provided as an elected representative addresses immediate needs. The purpose of literature is entirely different; the two cannot be compared.”

Emphasising that historical stories must continually be reclaimed and recreated, Su. Venkatesan stated that such history must be told by internalising the narrative of our own times. “Velpari should not remain merely Kapilar’s story or a story of Kapilar’s era. It must transform into a story of our times as well. This is what recreating our heritage means. This is a crucial political arena. I view this as a form of politics conducted right within the arena of cultural adversaries,” Su. Venkatesan concluded.