

A R Venkatachalapathy ஆ.இரா. வேங்கடாசலபதி
163 posts

@ARV_Chalapathy
Historian, Tamil writer, Academic







‘Swadeshi Steam’ by A.R. Venkatachalapathy chronicles V.O. Chidambaram Pillai and his battle against the British Maritime Empire. This magisterial book is an act of archival retrieval and historical scholarship. Chidambaram Pillai's visionary Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company was a revolutionary idea that challenged the might of the British Empire. At the Jaipur Literature Festival 2025, In conversation with academic and historian Sunil S. Amrith, Venkatachalapathy brings to life the inspiring saga of one individual's vision that sparked a revolution. Presented by @AmarUjalaNews To watch the full session, subscribe to our YouTube channel. @JprLitFest" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">youtube.com/@JprLitFest
#jaipurliteraturefestival2025 #jaipurlitfest2025 @TeamworkArts @SanjoyRoyTWA @NamitaGokhale_ @DalrympleWill @VidaDotWorld @MSArenaOfficial @Vedanta_Group @sunilamrith @ARV_Chalapathy



A.R. Venkatachalapathy, author of Swadeshi Steam: V.O. Chidambaram Pillai and the Battle against the British Maritime Empire, recounts a lifelong journey inspired by a forgotten hero: 'Without VOC, without this story, without this search, I would not be what I am.'Discovering that V.O. Chidambaram Pillai’s bold stand against the British Empire was absent from his school textbooks sparked a 40-year search through archives across the globe. What began as a curiosity became a mission to uncover and document the legacy of a modest lawyer who dared to challenge the world's greatest maritime power. @ARV_Chalapathy @PenguinIndia @PenguinBooks #GajaCapitalBookPrize #GajaCapital #Entrepreneurship #Business #BusinessBookPrize












Flashback and fast forward: #Notebook column on covering today's news & chancing upon nuggets from history, where someone tells you "been there, done that" - based on @ARV_Chalapathy's book talk on VOC, pioneer of Indo-Lanka connectivity thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/… via @the_hindu


