Perumal Murugan urges Tamil Nadu govt to institute state-level Sahitya Akademi award to honour Tamil literary voices

NAMAKKAL: Tamil writer Perumal Murugan, who has recently been honoured with the Man Bahadur Singh Lahak Award for 2026, called on the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam govt to institute a dedicated Sahitya Akademi Award exclusively for the Tamil literature.Speaking to reporters in Namakkal on Monday, Murugan said the national Sahitya Akademi Award continued to honour writers across India, but Tamil Nadu should take the initiative to recognise its own literary voices with a state-level distinction.Murugan, whose novels Madhorubagan and Poonachi were translated into multiple Indian and foreign languages, urged the govt to increase remuneration for translators who make Tamil works available in other languages. “Writers and translators should not face reduced benefits as in the past. Instead, their support must be strengthened to ensure that Tamil literature reaches wider audiences,” he said.Murugan had served as the principal of Namakkal’s Arignar Anna Government Arts College before opting for voluntary retirement in 2022. Pyre, the English translation of his novel Pūkkuḻi, was longlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2023. The same year, the English translation of his novel Aalandapatchi (Fire Bird) won the JCB Prize for Literature.