Anantanarayanan Madhaviah (16 August 1872 – 22 October 1925)[1] is one of the pioneer Tamil writers, novelists and journalists.

[3] His book Muthumeenakshi is a commentary on marital politics, sexuality, female illiteracy and patriarchy in his time in south India.

[4] Madhaviah was born on 16 August 1872 in Perungulam, a town in present-day Thoothukudi district, Tamil Nadu, India.

[6] His writings are criticized as being ambivalent toward British Protestant missions in the Madras Presidency.

[8] During his time the university students in South India had different family background and when they met the western philosophies it created new thoughts for them which were felt reformist in that era.