A notable young writer of Tamil, Ram Thangam hails from Nagercoil, Kanyakumari district, was born on 28-2-1988 on 28th February. He did his schooling at Samathana puram Government Primary School and Agastheeswaram Government High School. He holds a BA in History and a Diploma in Media Art from the Tamil Nadu Open University. He started writing from an early age with a passion for reading. He has served as a writer in Dinakaran, Ananda vikatan and now he is a full-time writer for literature and cinema.
His first book ‘Ghandhi Raman’ was released in March 2015. It was published by Sahitya Akademi award winning author Thriu. Ponneelan in Nagercoil. Gandhi Raman book brings out the life history of Thiru. Ghandhi Raman who was a freedom fighter. He actively involved himself in the Vaikam, Susindrum temple entry protest. This book bagged up the Southern Writer’s Movement Award.
A travel-based story-telling book “Oor Sutri Paravai” about the history, culture, traditions, martyrs and writers of Kanyakumari district was written by the author in the year 2015 and published by J.E.Publications. It was published in Nagercoil by Kalachuvadu publisher Thiru. Kannan.
At present, ‘Oor sutri Paravai’ is traversing on a new sky and has been reprinted Vanavil Puthakaalayam Publications. His acquaintance with folklore researcher Shri. A.K. Perumal kindled his interest in history. His next book ‘Meenava Veeranku Oru Kovil’ was originated from a folklore tale said by A.K. Perumal. This folklore book on the traditions, customery lore, beliefs of Southern land was published by the J.E.Publications and was launched in January 2016 by Sahitya Akademi award-winning writer Joe D cruz at Nagercoil. For the first three books of writer Ram Thangam, historian A.K. Perumal has written the preface. ‘Triveni Literary Sangam” was run by the writer along with his friends during 2016-17.
The writer has he engaged himself through the Society in various literary activities like book introductions and discussions. The Triveni Literary Sangam, in association with the Makkal Vaasippu Eyakkam have organized book fairs for three times at Nagercoil. The writer was encouraged and inspired by Sahitya Akademi award-winning writer Nanjil Nadan and translator Smt. K.V.Jeyasri, he started writing stories.
In November 30th 2017, his first short story ‘Thirukarthiyal’ was published in Ananda vikatan magazine. It received widespread and awestruck attention in Tamil literary World. The short story won the ‘Ashokamitran’ award from the Gnani Kolam Foundation.
In December 2018, the collection of short stories ‘Thirukarthiyal’ was published by Vamsi Books. It was published by journalist P.Thirumavelan in Chennai.
Thirukarthiyal gave Ram Thangam a unique identity in the Tamil literature. The collection won various awards for the year 2019 like ‘Sujatha Award, North Chennai Tamil Literary Award, Sowma Literary Award, Padaipu Literary Award, Antril Literary Award’.
The writer has organised ‘Ponneelan-80’-to celebrate the veteran writer of Tamil Thiru.Ponneelan on November 15-16, 2019 in Nagercoil by inviting all Tamil literary personalities, readers and interest group. He was the editor of the book Ponneelan-80 which was published on that day.
In 2020, writer Charu Nivedita selected Ram Thangam’s short novel ‘Rajavanam’ as the first prize in the short novel competition organized by ‘Maayaa Literary Circle’ in Singapore. The book was published by Vamsi Publications. It won the Padaipu Literature Award and the Poet Meera Award presented by the Vijaya Reader’s Circle.
“The quest and curiosity in me makes me to read. It is driving me to write. It is also making me to travel and stroll. All these three gets combined together in my creations”.
-Ram Thangam
His second collection of short stories, ‘Pulikkuthi’, was published by Vamsi Books in December 2021. It won the Sowma Literary Award for Best Short Story Collection 2021 and Padaipu Literary Award. “The book instils many changes in the minds of the reader. Travel brings in understanding of new people, their culture, lifestyle, and learning of their ways of life”.
Ram Thangam is very interested in travel and has brought his travel experiences as ‘God’s Land’ as a book through Vanavil Puthakalayam. It won the Padaipu Literature Group’s 2023 Best Book on Essay Award. He has translated children’s stories from English to Tamil for the National Book Trust, namely ‘Suriyanai Eta Yezhvu Padikal’, ‘Kattile Anandam’ and ‘Oru Sundeleyin Kathi’. His historical essays on Kumari District have been published as e-books on Amazon Kindle as ‘Chitharal’.
Many college students have done doctoral research on Ram Thangam’s books.
‘My land is my story plot.It is easy for me to write the lives of the people of my land,’says Ram Thangam, who writes about the life, history and mythology of the people of Kanyakumari district. He was awarded the 2023 Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puraskar Award for his collection of short stories ‘Thirukarthiyal’.
The short story ‘Velicham’ from Thirukarthiyal was included in the curriculum of Holy Cross College, Nagercoil.
The short story ‘kadanthu pogum’ from the collection ‘Thirukarthiyal’ has been selected for the compilation of Tamil Short Stories 2000-2020 compiled by author Bharathi Balan as a publication of Sahitya Akademi.
The story was translated into Malayalam by the translator Raghuram Manjeri under the title of ‘Kadanthu Pogom’ and published in Desabimani weekly magazine in June 2023.
An interview on Thirukarthiyal was published on 25th August 2023 in Atma Online Malayalam website’s Arteria Weekly e-magazine.
Subsequently, an interview with Ram Thangam was published as the cover story of the Malayalam weekly ‘Madhyamam’ published on September 11, 2023.
In the same magazine, the short story ‘Thirukarthiyal’ was translated by Shafi Cherumavilai and published under the title ‘Thirukarthikaa’. In December 2023, Vaaranam Novel written by Ram Thangam has been published by Vamsi Books.