Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin invited the children who participated in the latest episode of Zee Tamil’s weekly talent show Junior Super Star to his office and personally appreciated them for their portrayal of Periyar’s contributions to the anti-caste movement and gender justice. The children had also done a segment on Ashwini, the Narikurava woman who protested against the denial of ‘Annadhanam’ at a temple in Mamallapuram. Contestants in the show are aged between 4 and 14 years.
The theme for this week’s round, episode 17, season 4 of the show that aired on February 19 was ‘Mannum Mozhium’ (loosely: Our soil and our language). Contestants performed skits on a few places known for their significance to Tamils, such as Kancheepuram and silk saree weavers, and also tried to register a social message. The episode opened with a performance by Manimaran and his Bhuddar Kalai Kuzhu, an Ambedkarite parai troupe.
One portion of the round was dedicated to Erode, the birthplace of Dravidian ideologue, rationalist and social justice leader EV Ramasamy, fondly known as Periyar. In this segment, one of the contestants, Divashika (6), comes on stage dressed in a school uniform. Her mother (played by one of the show’s two mentors, VJ Kalyani) and Divashika discuss the topic for the elocution competition her character has signed up for at her school: Periyar. The child asks her mother who Periyar is. The mother answers that she will tell the child his story and the play shifts to 1948.
Periyar (Illantamil, aged 9) speaks out against the Hindu rituals that condemn women to life in a white saree after widowhood. Echoing the real-life leader’s sentiments on gender justice, the contestant says in Tamil, “Women have a life beyond their husbands. They have dreams and aspirations too. One of the reasons I oppose religion and caste is because caste, religion and culture are all simply ways to shackle women. Stop seeing women as just tools used to give birth… women should be able to access education, work in the field of their choice and come up in life. That is this old man’s hope and ambition.”
வேற மாறி... வேற மாறி..
— Zee Tamil (@ZeeTamil) February 19, 2022
JUNIOR SUPER STARS | Mannum Mozhium Round | Saturday and Sunday 6:30 PM#Zeetamil #JuniorSuperStar #JSS #NewShow #Sneha #samyuktha #Senthil #Kiki pic.twitter.com/T7qt4ORc74
The play shifts back to the present with Divashika who is now giving her speech at the elocution competition. “He [Periyar] took up the sickle of social justice to cut down the poisonous tree called caste… in memory of him we put up statues across the land. The Hindus saw the statues and were afraid. As long as even one person in the world holds on to their dignity and self-respect, your [Periyar’s] fame cannot be diminished… the rationalist Periyar wasn’t just another man, he was an education,” she says emphatically.
Sucker punch by a kid
— Yazhini PM (யாழினி ப மீ) (@yazhini_pm) February 19, 2022
பெரியார் ஒரு மனிதனல்ல, கல்வி !!#Periyar pic.twitter.com/OEIrFtgz0l
போன முறை நம்ம குழந்தைகள் செய்த சம்பவத்துக்கு கதறிய அண்ணாமலை முதல் முருகன் வரை இன்னும் அழுது முடிக்கல
— சாமானியனின் சவுக்கு© (@Samaniyantweet) February 19, 2022
அதுக்குள்ள அடுத்து
பெரியார் pic.twitter.com/60wcS7IMjj
Clips of the play have been shared on social media and seemed to have come to the notice of the CM. Stalin invited the children to his office where they each introduced themselves and their characters to him, even putting on impromptu performances. A video of the meeting was released from the Twitter handle of the Chief Minister’s Office, saying that Stalin congratulated the children on their skits on Periyar and Ashwini, and for their messages of social awareness.
தனியார் தொலைக்காட்சி நிகழ்ச்சிகளில் சமுதாய விழிப்புணர்வு குறித்து நடத்தப்பட்ட தந்தை பெரியார் நாடகத்தில் பங்கேற்ற சிறுவர், சிறுமியர்கள் மற்றும் குறவன் குறத்தி நாடகத்தில் பங்கேற்ற சிறுவர், சிறுமியர்கள் மாண்புமிகு முதலமைச்சர் @mkstalin அவர்களை சந்தித்து வாழ்த்து பெற்றனர். pic.twitter.com/8D2AQWvhdu
— CMOTamilNadu (@CMOTamilnadu) February 24, 2022
Interestingly, Junior Super Star is the same programme that some weeks ago aired a satirical skit which appeared to criticise the Union government’s schemes such demonetisation and disinvestment. The BJP had taken offence at the episode and written to the Chief Cluster Officer of Zee Enterprises Limited, demanding it be taken off air.