Global Spotlight on Dravidian Studies After Major Cambridge Donation

CHENNAI, India, June 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In a landmark gesture connecting global academia with Tamil Nadu’s legacy of social justice, noted technology entrepreneur and Founder of Populus Empowerment Network Mr. Sabarisan Vedamurthy and his wife Senthamarai Stalin, an educationist, have announced a significant philanthropic gift to the University of Cambridge to support advanced research on the Dravidian movement and its transformative socio-economic legacy in South India.

Sabarisan Vedamurthy, Senthamarai Stalin and Family, Seen with Professor Shruti Kapila and others from Cambridge.

The gift will endow a permanent PhD studentship and provide ongoing support for postdoctoral research focused on the political thought, public policy, and economic frameworks that emerged from the Dravidian movement — an egalitarian movement that has profoundly shaped the trajectory of modern Tamil Nadu since Indian independence.

In honour of M. Karunanidhi, five-time Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and a towering figure in the Dravidian movement, the scholarships will be named the M. Karunanidhi Scholarships. These scholarships will commemorate his commitment to social justice, educational access, and inclusive economic progress, values that remain at the heart of Dravidian growth model.

The initiative is housed within Cambridge’s School of the Humanities and Social Sciences, and aims to amplify global understanding of Tamil Nadu’s distinctive development path. It will promote original scholarship and enable sustained engagement with questions of caste, state capacity, welfare, and grassroots political mobilisation in Tamil Nadu.

In a joint statement, Mr. Vedamurthy and Mrs. Senthamarai said: “At a time when inclusion, equity, and dignity are reshaping global discourse, Tamil Nadu offers an inspiring model of what transformative public policy can achieve. This gift is about recognising the contributions of a movement that empowered millions and ensuring that its story becomes part of global academic and policy conversations. We believe that through research and dialogue, the Dravidian experience can offer valuable lessons not just for India, but for the world.”

“For us, this is personal,” the couple added. “It is a tribute to a legacy that runs deep in our lives and in the lives of millions who were touched by the ideals of social upliftment and equality. It is also about encouraging the next generation of scholars to explore this powerful history through critical inquiry and rigorous research.”

The M. Karunanidhi PhD Studentship will be awarded preferentially to students from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds, supporting their research in Dravidian politics, economics and history in Tamil Nadu. Commenting on the announcement, Professor Tim Harper, Head of the School of the Humanities and Social Sciences at Cambridge, said: “We are delighted that Mr Sabarisan and Mrs Senthamarai have chosen to support the future of these important areas of study, and we look forward to welcoming the first M. Karunanidhi scholar next year”

Professor Shruti Kapila, a leading scholar of modern Indian history and political thought, added: “This donation will have a lasting impact on future generations and help to bring Dravidian studies to a global audience. We are very grateful to the family and pleased to be able to honour M. Karunanidhi here in Cambridge.”

The donation represents a growing recognition that South Asia’s internal histories, especially those outside the often-highlighted Global North, deserve global scholarly attention.

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Sabarisan Vedamurthy, Senthamarai Stalin and Family, Seen with Professor Shruti Kapila and others from Cambridge

Sabarisan Vedamurthy, Senthamarai Stalin and Family, Seen with Professor Shruti Kapila and others from Cambridge.

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