Kavignar Subbu Arumugam, who popularised villupaattu, a folk art of southern districts, across Tamil Nadu, died on Sunday night. He was 95, and is survived by his wife Mahalakshmi, son Gandhi and daughter Bharathi Thirumagan, both of who accompanied him during performances, and another daughter Subbulakshmi.
While villupaatu is performed in the temples of folk deities such as Sudalai Madan, Esakki Amman, and Mutharamman during kodai — festival during summer — Subbu Arumugam modernised the singing methods, the texts and introduced stories with social themes. References to villupaatu can be found in minor literary works such as Mukkudapallu and Viralividu Thoothu.
Padma Shri awardee Subbu Arumugam’s art showcased a perfect blend of Tamil and folk form. Innumerable villupaatu artistes lived and continue to live in Kanniyakumari, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi and Virudhunagar districts and perform in temples of folk deities. His knowledge of the Tamil language and literature and his exposure to folk art forms drew him towards villupaatu.
