Subramanya Bharathi, known as Mahakavi Bharathiar is deemed one of the greatest poets of India. A prolific writer, philosopher and a great visionary of immense genius and perspicacity, Bharathiar was also one of the most prominent leaders of the Indian independence movement in South India. Born in the Tamil village of Ettayapuram, Bharathi was educated at a local high school called "Nellai Hindu School" where his talents as a poet were recognized even at the age of 11. He married Chellamal in 1897. After an early marriage, Bharathi, curious to see the outside world, left for Kashi in 1898. The next four years of his life served as a passage of discovery, when Bharathy discovered a country in tumult outside his small hamlet. He had an exceptional love and devotion towards his mother tongue Tamil language, which he considered as the sweetest of all the languages known to him. He was fluent in many languages including Bengali, Hindi, Sanskrit, Kutchi, French and English and frequently translated works from other languages into Tamil. He had a voracious appetite for learning ancient and contemporary Tamil literature and had a gifted intellect to derive astonishing truths from ancient poems. Immersing himself in Hindu spirituality and nationalism, Bharathi returned to his Southern home, an iconoclast who shattered without hesitation, every meaningless social taboo and rule that held sway amidst the orthodox South Indians. By the early 1900s, Bharathi had become completely involved in the nationalist movement and took active part in the Congress meets through out the country.