Ananda Ranga Pillai: Difference between revisions
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== Discovery and translation of the diaries == |
== Discovery and translation of the diaries == |
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On Ananda Ranga Pillai's death, the diaries came into the possession of his nephew Tiruvengam Pillai who appears to have maintained a series of records of his own till the beginning of 1770.<ref name="anandarangapillaidiary1904v1intro13">[[#The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I|The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I]], Introduction, Pg xiii</ref> Subsequent generations of the family had discarded it until the manuscript was recovered in a |
On Ananda Ranga Pillai's death, the diaries came into the possession of his nephew Tiruvengam Pillai who appears to have maintained a series of records of his own till the beginning of 1770.<ref name="anandarangapillaidiary1904v1intro13">[[#The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I|The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I]], Introduction, Pg xiii</ref> Subsequent generations of the family had discarded it until the manuscript was recovered in a decrepit state by Gallois Montburn, the Mayor of Pondicherry, a scholar of Oriental languages, in 1846, who immediately set upon translating the manuscript to French. However, when the translated manuscript was being edited a number of gaps were discovered<ref name="anandarangapillaidiary1904v1intro14">[[#The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I|The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I]], Introduction, Pg xiv</ref> The gaps were supplemented when volumes one and two of Ananda Ranga Pillai's diary were found. These were subsequently translated into French in 1870 and 1889. In 1894, Julien Vinson, Professor of the Special School of Livino-Oriental Languages at Paris who had published the second translation (which was, obviously, incomplete) published a supposed full translation of Ananda Ranga Pillai's diaries titled ''Les Francais dans l'lnde,'' In 1892, the existence of the diary was brought to the notice of Lieutenant General H. Macleod, the British Consular Agent at Pondicherry.<ref name="anandarangapillaidiary1904v1intro15">[[#The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I|The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I]], Introduction, Pg xv</ref> At the direction of Lord Wenlock, the then Governor of Madras, an English translation of the diary from Montbrun's copy was attempted. This was completed in 1896. |
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== Legacy == |
== Legacy == |
Revision as of 11:20, 19 September 2008
Ananda Ranga Pillai | |
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A portrait of Ananda Ranga Pillai | |
Born | |
Died | January 16, 1761 | (aged 51)
Occupation(s) | merchant, dubash |
Employer | French East India Company |
Known for | diary |
Spouse | Mangathayi Ammal |
Children | Pappal, Kalathi, Lakshmi, Annasamy, Ayyasamy |
Ananda Ranga Pillai (b. March 30, 1709 - d.January 16, 1761) was a dubash in the service of the French East India Company. He is mainly famous for his set of private diaries from the year 1736 to 1761 which portray life in 18th century India.
Ananda Ranga Pillai was born in Madras in a well-to-do Vellalar family. At a very early age, Ananda Ranga Pillai emigrated with his father to Pondicherry where the family pursued their business interests. On his father's death in 1726, Ananda Ranga was made dubash and served in his capacity till his removal on grounds of ill-health and deteriorating performance. Ananda Ranga died in 1761 at the age of 51. Ananda Ranga was especially known for his promixity to the French Governor Dupleix, who favored him in various appointments.
Ananda Ranga Pillai's diaries were translated in the early 20th century and bring to light life in the mid 18th century AD and the Anglo-French Carnatic wars. His mansion in Pondicherry has been recognized as a heritage monument.
C. S. Srinivasachari, a prominent Indian historian described Ananda Ranga Pillai as the "Samuel Pepys of French India".[1]
Early life
Ananda Ranga Pillai was born to a merchant named Tiruvengada Pillai on March 30, 1709 in the village of Perambur on the outskirts of Madras.[2] Madras was, then, the center of Tiruvengada Pillai's business activities. In 1716, at the behest of Nainiya Pillai, a brother-in-law of Tiruvengada Pillai, who then functioned as the chief Indian agent of French Pondicherry, Guillaume André d'Hébert the French Governor of Pondicherry invited Tiruvengada Pillai and other important Indian merchants of Madras, to his city.[2] Relying on Nainiya Pillai's advice, Tiruvengada moved with his family and businesses to Pondicherry and settled there.[2] Soon afterwards, Nainiya Pillai fell out of favor with the Governor and was thrown in prison where he died from neglect.[2] In contrast, Tiruvengada rapidly rose in favor with the French rulers and attained a respectable position in the city.
Tiruvengada Pillai's Return to Madras and the French Governor's assurance
On the arrest of Nainiya Pillai, Tiruvengada Pillai had fled to Madras fearing arrest and ill-treatment.[3] However, de La Prévostière who succeeded d'Hébert induced Tiruvengada to return.[3] Meanwhile, Nainiya Pillai's son Guruva Pillai escaped to France via Madras. His charges against d'Hébert before the Duke of Orleans were responsible for the removal and replacement of Governor d'Hébert.[2] Guruva Pillai later adopted Christianity and settled down in France where he was appointed Chevalier of St Michael.[3]Guruva Pillai died in 1724 followed by Tiruvengada Pillai in June 1726.[3]
Early career
Pierre Christoph Le Noir who succeeded de La Prévostière had great regard for Tiruvengada Pillai and his family. Hence on Tiruvengada Pillai's death in 1726, he gave employment to his son Ananda Ranga Pillai in the French East India Company and made him the chief of the Indian employees at the Company's factory at Porto Novo.[3] Soon, Ananda Ranga proved his worth. Large quantities of blue cloth were manufactured at Porto Novo. This was made possible mainly due to the efforts of Ananda Ranga Pillai who also established trading posts at Lalapettai and Arcot for trading Indian merchandise for European manufactures.[3]
Ananda's fortune reached greater heights during the tenure of Le Noir's successor Pierre Benoît Dumas who, too, seemed to have had a favorable opinion of him.[4]
Till his death, Guruva Pillai had functioned as the chief dubash of Pondicherry.[4] A dubash was a merchant in service of the Company who roughly performed the task of a translator and intermediary between Indian and European merchants. On Guruva's death, the chief dubashship passed into the hands of another family as Guruva Pillai's children have been raised Hindu and the Chief Ecclesiastes of the Colony strongly desired that the holders of the particular office needed to be Christian.[4] When Dupleix became the Governor, the chief dubash was one Kanakaraya Mudali with whom Ananda Ranga Pillai had a bitter rivalry.[4][5] However, Kanakaraya Mudali died in the year 1746[5] and in 1747, after many consultations and decision-making, Ananda Ranga Pillai was made chief dubash.[5]
Rise to power
"On considering this transaction, it appears to me that our lordly Governor was bereft of sense; and it was in this wise". |
- Ananda Ranga Pillai on Governor Dupleix, regarding Dupleix's decision over a minor local dispute.|[6] |
On March 27, 1737, Ananda Ranga Pillai was questioned by the Governor Dumas about four bales of cloth that have been reported as missing from the cargo by Dubois stationed at Mylapore.[7] But Ananda made a staunch defence insisiting that the four bales of cloth had been received by Mahe de la Villebague, captain of the ship at Cuddalore who had issued a receipt confirming the same.[8] The Governor contacted the authorities at Cuddalore and found that the four bales of cloth were included in the accounts of shipments from the city.[8]
In November 1738, the bitter rivalry that had existed between Ananda Ranga Pillai and the chief dubash Kanakaraya Mudali flared up into a conflagration. Observing that Ananda Ranga Pillai had not remitted the interest for the loan he had borrowed to pay coral merchants, Kanakaraya Mudali reported the same to the Governor.[9] Initially, the Governor Dumas insisted upon the dubash paying the interest but later, on learning of the heavy losses that had befallen the dubash that year, he conceded[10] and even offered to pay off Ananda Ranga Pillai's debts. [11] But Ananda Ranga Pillai refused. The matter was raised before the Council where Ananda Ranga had to answer for the charges brought out against him.[12]Ananda Ranga pleaded with Mr. Golard a member of the Council explaining that he had never paid interest before.[13] At length, the Council decided in favor of Ananda Ranga Pillai and his debt was waived.[14]
On October 22, 1739, Kanakaraya Mudali's 21-year old son, Velvendra Mudali died at the age of 21.[15] Velvendra's mother committed suicide on receiving the news.[16]
On October 19, 1741, Dumas left Pondicherry leaving charge to the Deputy Governor[17] who ruled Pondicherry till January 14, 1742 when Joseph François Dupleix arrived from Chandranagore[18]During Dupleix's tenure, Ananda Ranga rose to the zenith of power and prominence in French India[4] and exercised firm control over the internal affairs of the territory.
From 1743 onwards, Ananda Ranga rose rapidly in favor of the Governor of Pondicherry. when the suburban villages of Pondicherry were leased for five years to Kumara Pillai, Vira Nayakkan, Chandramadi Pillai, and Ella Pillai, Ananda Ranga Pillai was able to offer surety for the renters for a period of five years.[19] Nevertheless, when Kesava Aiyan passed away, Ananda Ranga was not able to prevent Kanakaraya Mudali from nominating his brother-in-law Gavinivasa Mudali as dubash in Kesava Aiyan's place.[20][21] Kanakaraya Mudali secured his objective despite the vehement protests of Ananda Ranga Pillai. On June 29, 1744, the marriage of Ananda Ranga Pillai's daughter Papal was conducted in regal splendor. [22] Ananda Ranga further solidifed his position by mediating in disputes such as those between Prakasa Mudali and Tiruvengada Pillai,[23] etc. Not to be left behind, on November 30, 1745, Ananda Ranga's great rival Kanakaraya Mudali constructed a church at Ozhukkarai and celebrated its consecration by providing a great feast.[24] Ananda Ranga Pillai, however, heaps heavy criticism for inviting people of non-Christian faiths for the feast celebrating the consecration of a church.
On February 12, 1746, Kanakaraya Mudali died[25] and on his death, there was an inheritance dispute between his heirs.[26] A Committee of 20 officials were appointed to arbitrate and Ananda Ranga Pillai led the Committee.[27] The Committee decided that Chinna Mudali, the brother of the deceased Kanakaraya Mudali was the rightful heir to his estate.[28]However, Chinna Mudali was not satisfied[29][30] and the matter dragged on till April 1746, when Ananda Ranga's diplomacy finally sealed the matter.[31]
Apart from pleasing the Governor through his service, Ananda Ranga Pillai also incurred the Governor's wrath on certain occasions. There was at least one occasion during thei period when Ananda Ranga was questioned by Dupleix regarding payment of the large sum of money he owed to the Company.[32]Ananda Ranga Pillai, however, soon cleared off his debts by paying one Suga Sing the money the Company owed him.[33] However, still, Dupleix demanded 1,000 pagodas that Ananda Ranga Pillai owed the Company.[34] It was evident that much more than the service Ananda Ranga Pillai had rendered to the Company, it was Ananda Ranga Pillai's position as Dupleix's favorite that had helped him scale the ladder.
Ananda Ranga Pillai was questioned by the Governor regarding the ill-treatment of a prisoner called Mari Chetti.[35][36] Chinna Mudali was deputed to interrogate two eye-witnesses Tandavarayan and Rangan and they swore that Ananda Ranga's conduct towards Mari Chetty was, in no way, objectionable. Based on this evidence, Ananda Ranga was acquitted.[37]
Throughout Dupleix's tenure, Ananda Ranga Pillai entertained dignitaries as the dubash of Fort St David, Indian merchants, and even Mahe de la Bordannais[38]. He also supervised the regular payment of revenue. Official communications to the Governor, too, was handled by him.[39][40][41][42] He performed errands for the Governor and adjudicated on criminal cases.[43][44][45] In May 1746, he interceded on behalf of one Karaikal Tiruvengadam who had been imprisoned and obtained his release.[46]
Soon after Kanakaraya Mudali's death in February 1746, his younger brother Chinna Mudali started making efforts to obtain the post of Chief Dubash which his brother had previously held.[47]However, the property dispute he had with Kanakaraya Mudali's wife and his own lack of competence and skill soon saw him out of the race. On June 12, 1746, de Bausset, a long time comanion of Ananda Ranga Pillai urged him to campaign for Chief Dubash-ship.[48][49] However, Ananda Ranga Pillai seems to have been reluctant to accept the post initially when the Governor nominated Ananda Ranga Pillai for the post. 193 194 However, on the insistence of Mrs. Dupleix he accepted.[50][51][52]At that time, he came to know that another aspirant Annapurna Aiyan had bribed the Governor and his wife for the post.[53] However, this attempt fails as Ananda Ranga Pillai is eventually appointed Chief DUbash. However, Mrs. Dupleix demands extremely costly bribes in order to support his candidature. '
Discovery and translation of the diaries
On Ananda Ranga Pillai's death, the diaries came into the possession of his nephew Tiruvengam Pillai who appears to have maintained a series of records of his own till the beginning of 1770.[54] Subsequent generations of the family had discarded it until the manuscript was recovered in a decrepit state by Gallois Montburn, the Mayor of Pondicherry, a scholar of Oriental languages, in 1846, who immediately set upon translating the manuscript to French. However, when the translated manuscript was being edited a number of gaps were discovered[55] The gaps were supplemented when volumes one and two of Ananda Ranga Pillai's diary were found. These were subsequently translated into French in 1870 and 1889. In 1894, Julien Vinson, Professor of the Special School of Livino-Oriental Languages at Paris who had published the second translation (which was, obviously, incomplete) published a supposed full translation of Ananda Ranga Pillai's diaries titled Les Francais dans l'lnde, In 1892, the existence of the diary was brought to the notice of Lieutenant General H. Macleod, the British Consular Agent at Pondicherry.[56] At the direction of Lord Wenlock, the then Governor of Madras, an English translation of the diary from Montbrun's copy was attempted. This was completed in 1896.
Legacy
Since the discovery and translation of his diaries during the 1800s and early 1900s, Ananda Ranga Pillai has accumulated a great deal of posthumous fame and recognition for his depiction of 18th century South India, the intrigues and deals in French Pondicherry and his description of the French conquest of Madras and the Carnatic Wars. His set of diaries have emerged as one of our primary sources of reference on the Carnatic Wars. Ananda Ranga Pillai has been referred to by V. V. S. Aiyar in his journal Balabharati and had attracted the curiosity of Subrahmanya Bharati, Aurobindo Ghosh and Mandyam Srinivasa Iyengar.[1]C. S. Srinivasachari, a prominent Indian historian, described Ananda Ranga Pillai as "the Samuel Pepys of French India".[1]
Ananda Ranga Pillai's house in Pondicherry, which is located in a street named after the dubash, was one of the few buildings to survive the British invasion of the city in 1761.It was recently recognized as a heritage monument by the Government of Pondicherry. The mansion is known for its unique blend of Indian and French architecture: the ground floor being built in Indian fashion, while the columns which supported the terrace followed the French architectural style.
A diary maintained by Muthu Vijaya Tiruvengadam Pillai, grandson of Ananda Ranga Pillai, and relating to the period from 1794 to 1796 was translated and published on March 30, 2000.[57]
See also
Notes
- ^ a b c Sundaram, V. (July 21, 2005). "The Samuel Pepys of French India". News Today. Retrieved 2008-9-17.
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(help) - ^ a b c d e The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Introduction, Pg vii
- ^ a b c d e f The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Introduction, Pg viii
- ^ a b c d e The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Introduction, Pg ix
- ^ a b c The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Introduction, Pg x
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 392
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 14
- ^ a b The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 15
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 66
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 69
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 71
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 75
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 76
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 77
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 102
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 103
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 182
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 184
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 227
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 251
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 252
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 256
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 284
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 293
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 311
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 314
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 315
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 320
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 346
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 363
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 380
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 326
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 79
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 86
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 396
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 398
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 399
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 115
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 72
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 139
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 140
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 144
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 182
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 183
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 197
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 35
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Pg 406
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 61
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 62
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 198
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 199
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 200
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1907, Volume II, Pg 245
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Introduction, Pg xiii
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Introduction, Pg xiv
- ^ The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai 1904, Volume I, Introduction, Pg xv
- ^ "18th century diary to be released today". The Hindu. March 30, 2000. Retrieved 2008-9-17.
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References
- Pillai, Ananda Ranga (1904). The Private Diary of Ananda Ranga Pillai, Volume I. Madras: Government Press.
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