Ponniyin Selvan, the literary extravaganza created by Kalki still remains, nearly seven decades after is initial publication, one of the most popular novels of contemporary Tamil Nadu. Rightly so. Well written, with a tight narrative, revolving around the intrigues of succession in the Chola court, against the background of the Chola invasion of Sri Lanka, this novel fulfils all the criteria of a Historical Novel enumerated by George Lukcas. The setting of the plot is reasonably accurate, the characters are plausible in that they are situated in the glare of History, and there is no overt "fictionalizing" or the introduction of extra historical details. Like we cannot tae Sir Walter Scot's Waverly Novels as a record of medieval history, we cannot assume that Kalki has got his facts or perspective right. And that was not his goal.
The chronological framework of the Novel (PS) was derived from Nilakanta Sastri's magnum opus, The Cholas which was published by the Madras University. The role of the Palluvettaraiyars, the clan to which Nandhini belonged was loyal to the Cholas right to the bitter end when Jatavarman Kulasekara Pandya triumphed over the Cholas in the thirteenth century and therefore the huge question mark over the loyalty of this Clan is not backed by evidence, though the twist does impart a dramatic dimension to the plot. The death of Rajaditya in the Battle of Takkolam in 949 AD is attested to by historical records like the Tiruvanladu Copper Plates and it also records the "disappearance" of Aditya, a subtle euphemism for the assassination, as shown in PS. The removal of Aditya the son of Sundara Chola Parantaka II (956-923) paved the way for Arulmorrivarman to ascend the throne as Rajaraja I (985-1014). A silence in the historical record is transmuted into an eloquent conspiracy, and this indeed, may have been so, but the records are silent.
The Big Temple at Tanjavur has been studied by this Historian in the M S Najaraja Felicitation Volume and in the K V Ramesh Memorial Volume and so I will not go over those details here. However there are two curious details from the cinematic depiction of PS that are important. These pertain to the use of the Horse as a fighting platform and the state of Naval Technology in Chola Tamil Nadu. Of course, Kalki has used his imagination and we are not faulting him for that. We are merely testing the cinematic depiction against contemporary records,
The figure on the left is from the Mandapa od the Srirngam Ranganatha Swami Temple. This sculpture depicts a horseman and belongs to the 15th century, after the temple had been rebuilt and reconsecrated by the Vijayanagara Rayas. What is to be noticed here is the absence of the stirrup, that vital innovation that is a force multiplier, the speed and weight of the horse to hurl the mounted soldier against his adversary. It is the stirrup that enables the rider to stay bolt upright and balance himself on the horse. The stirrup was unknown in South India until the advent of the Muslim Conquest in the fourteenth century. The battle scenes shown in the film PS show horses with saddles to which are attached stirrups, and as such anachronisms, in the bright glare of History.
The ships and water crafts shown in PS celebrate visual design not historical accuracy. Only one solitary example of a 13th century Indian Ship has been found so far and that too in distant Kerala. The Lateen sail shown on ships plying between Chola Ports and Sri Lanka were introduced only in the 13th century, and the Arabs were probably responsible for this technological advance. B Arunachalam in his Chola Navigation Package has illustrated Chola sea crafts of the time of Rajaraja I.
The Chola vessels were certainly sea worthy and the claim of Rajendra I that he conquered lands across the "rolling seas" is certainly true as they are attested by inscriptions found in the Gankaionda Chola Puram Temple. However, the shape and design and technical details are still unknown. And the reason is due to the heavy dose of identity politics and fanciful theories that dominate the field.
