The Folk-Songs of Southern India

'There is no better way of discovering the real feelings and ideas of a people than that afforded by the songs that pass from lip to lip in their streets and markets'.
Charles E. Gover

It is almost impossible to come across the early Dravidian folk literature that has not been systematically corrupted or mutilated by the onslaught of Puranic legends and the Brahminical influence. This book attempts to fathom the feelings of the masses by gathering the folk-songs of the Dravidian people. These songs belong to the plains where dwell the Tamil and Telugu people; the Mysore plateau, the home of the Kannada-speaking; hills and valleys of Nilgiris and the Western Ghats, sheltering the tribes of Coorg and the Badagas of Udagamandalam and the low-lying, coastal Kerala that divides the Ghats from the sea. The samples given herein are examples of the excellent vernacular literature that existed during the Dravidian Augustan period.

Contents:

The Folk-Songs of Southern India Canarese Songs Badaga Songs Coorg Songs Tamil Songs The Cural Malayalam Songs Telugu Songs