Dissonance and other stories

In an exceptional literary career spanning over half a century and straddling several genres, D Jayakanthan , had written over 40 novels, 200 short stories and 15 collection of essays in Tamil. An iconoclast who ridiculed exploitative social norms, his works reveal a deep and nuanced understanding of the complex problems faced by women, and of the many divides in the society. His first fil, Unnai Pol Oruvan, based on the novel of the same name, has the unique distinction of being the first Tamil film to recieve the President's Award (1965). Jayakanthan won Sahitya Akademi Award in 1972 for his novel Sila Neragalil Sila Manithargal, and was conferred the Jnanpith Award in 2002.

Dr K S Subramanian is involved in several literary and social pursuits, and has translated extensively from the Tamil to English. Four collections of his articles and papers on literary, social and developmental themes have been published in Tamil. He is also a member of the Tamil Advisory Board in the Sahitya Akademi. He retired as a senior government official, and currently lives and works in Chennai.