Before there was an organisation, there were readers carrying books across borders, building little magazines, making room for writers and growing literature .
The Name
The long civil war in Sri Lanka, which began in 1983 and came to an end in 2009, displaced nearly half of the island's Tamil population, scattering them across the world as refugees. One among them was Selvam Arulanantham. He made his way to Germany via Russia, struggled to survive in Paris and eventually settled in Canada, where he lived for many years as a refugee before obtaining citizenship.
Throughout this period, what remained a constant force in his life was his intense commitment to modern Tamil literature. It became an anchor for his life and a source of hope for the future.
While in Paris, Selvam was associated with the literary journal Paalam. After settling in Canada, he founded the organisation Living Tamil in 1992. He began bringing Tamil books from India and making them available to Tamils like himself who had settled in Canada. He organised literary meetings and published a magazine called Kalam.
The spirit that animated Selvam Arulanantham has continued to endure as a fundamental force among Tamils across the world. Therefore, when an international organisation was established in 2026 on behalf of the Vishnupuram Literary Circle, the name Living Tamil was chosen both to honour him and to place that sensibility at the forefront.
The Event
M Naveen, founder Vallinam, a literary movement in Malaysia, and is a fellow traveller of the Vishnupuram Literary Circle, was speaking with Jeyamohan during a car journey in Penang on 26 November 2022. They discussed the idea of organising a literary conference with three aims: to bring together and coordinate the activities of Vishnupuram Literary Circle’s chapters across the world; to present the developments and initiatives in modern Tamil literature to readers around the world; and to reach the younger generation of the Tamil diaspora, many of whom can no longer read Tamil directly.
Jeyamohan suggested that rather than holding the conference in Singapore or Kuala Lumpur, it could be held in New York, as it is one of the most important cultural centres of the world. At the time, however, without substantial financial resources or institutional support, it seemed like a distant dream.
Nevertheless, through the efforts of V. Soundararajan, the principal coordinator of Vishnupuram Literary Circle in the United States, and other friends including Rajan Somasundaram, Palanijothi, Maheswari, Sorna Ravikumar, Viswanathan, Annadurai , the initiative was taken forward. Overcoming numerous obstacles, the first literary conference, entitled “Living Tamil,”was held in New York on 5 and 6 April 2026.
Thirty writers from Tamil Nadu travelled to the United States and took their place on the world stage. Fifteen American writers engaged in conversations with them. Participants were admitted to the litfest only after their literary interests and reading habits had been personally verified by the organisers. The entire programme was conducted in English by members of the younger generation, who also translated the Tamil writers' talks into English. Participants paid a fee to attend.. Nearly 300 people took part in the conference, of which more than half were young adults.
Following the success of the conference, it was decided that similar literary meets should be held every year in different parts of the world. The conference made a significant impact on the Tamil literary milieu. It was therefore decided that the next such conference would be held in London.
Our Ideals
For nearly five generations, modern Tamil literature has evolved with a distinctly partisan character. It has never received meaningful support from the government or from educational institutions. Writers have created literature instinctively, driven by their inner quests and emotional impulses.
Even today, much of Tamil creative writing appears primarily in small literary magazines and online publications. Books are often published in editions of only a few hundred copies. As a result, writers gain neither fame, financial reward nor significant social recognition from literature. Most writers belong to the middle class or live in even more modest economic circumstances. What sustains them is the idealism of literature.
The purpose of this festival, therefore, is to bring this genuine literary tradition to readers across the world as opposed to the simplistic propagandist writing often promoted by governments and political parties. We are not presenting a gross average; we present only the best and the genuine.
We seek to create a space where Tamil writers can engage in dialogue with writers from around the world and participate in global literary conversation. We wish to present to the world the distinctive aesthetics and unique perspectives that have emerged in Tamil literature precisely because of its partisan character.
Neither religion nor politics can truly unite us or move us forward. Only modern literature, with its fresh ideas, new ideals and a vision of the future, can.
Jeyamohan, quoted from his 2026 Newyork Litfest interview