Association of Singapore Tamil Writers

The Association of Singapore Tamil Writers (ASTW) was formed in 1976 and has been active since. Among those who initiated the formation of the Association were V Ikkuvanam, M Chidambaram, Rama Periyakaruppan, T Pavadaisamy, N Palanivelu, A P Raman, Fakrudeen Sahib and R Thuraimanickam. The objectives of ASTW are to promote the interests of Tamil writers and foster Tamil language and literature in Singapore. Presently, the association has about 115 members, with more than 90% of them as Life Members.Besides holding competitions for students from kindergartens to universities, ASTW also holds competitions for  the general public to promote Tamil language and literature. The competitions comprise short-story, poetry and singing as well as songwriting. ASTW also hosts debates, poetry recitals, seminars and workshops.

ASTW organises three important annual festivals. The first one focuses on the three forms of Tamil arts, the second on the great epic Kambaramayana and the third on Kannadasan, one of the most popular poets among Tamils. It also joins hands with government agencies such as the National Arts Council and the National Library Board to conduct the ‘Singapore Writers Festival’ and the ‘Read Singapore’ events respectively. The association also conducts book launches and introductions. Its monthly event ‘Kathaikalam’ (a platform for short story-writing) is designed to hone the writing skills of budding writers. ASTW has achieved two notable milestones: In 2011, it organised a three-day World Tamil Writers Conference, the first of its kind. In 2016, it was selected to represent Singapore at the famous Chennai Book Fair to promote and sell the works of Singaporean Tamil writers.

In honour of the founder of Tamil Murasu, Tamizhavel G Sarangapany, ASTW presents the ‘Tamizhavel Award’ to a selected local Tamil writer annually. Similarly, in honour of the founder of Anandha Bhavan, Mu Ku Ramachandra, the ‘Mu Ku Ramachandra Book Prize’ is awarded on a rotational basis to the best entries in short stories, poems and essays. Furthermore, since 2012, the ‘Kaviyarasu Kannadasan Award’ has been presented to a promising young writer below the age of 40 as a way to encourage younger Tamil writers. In 2025, ASTW, with the support of other institutions, organised the SG60 Tamil Book Festival, in conjunction with Singapore’s 60th anniversary of Independence. Publishers from India, Malaysia and Singapore participated in the festival.

For more information
Singapore Tamil Writers' Association. (n.d.). Official website. Accessed on August 1, 2025. http://singaporetamilwriters.com 

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The information in this article is valid as of August 2025 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. If you have any feedback on this article, please submit here.