First Comes the Night (Mudhalil Iravu Varum): Sahitya Akademi Award Winning Tamil Short Stories

First Comes the Night is the English translation of the Tamil short story collection Mudhalil Iravu Varum by Aadhavan Sundaram. which won the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1987. The stories are noted for their innovative style, refreshing originality of theme and the power of intellectual analysis. The stories deal with the complexities of the middle-class Tamilians life. probes the predicament of the youth confronting a crisis of identity and seeks to come to terms with the generation gap.< /p>

K.S. Aadhavan Sundaram (1942-1981): Aadhavan excelled as a writer of fiction within a short span of life. A sensitive artist with an eye for detail. Aadhavan delved deep into the emotional depths of his characters with a detachment that marked him out as one of the most promising writers in Tamil. He has authored three novels and five short story collections. His short stories ranging from expressions of social attitudes to individual assertions, reveal his grip over the literary form. Intellectual inquiry and literary sophistication are synthesised in them. His other short story collections are: Iravukku Munbu Varuvadu Malai (1974), Kanavuk kumizhikal (1975). Kal Vali (1975). Oru Araiyil Irandu Narkaligal (1980).
R. Sundaresan is a poet and translator of fiction. He has successfully caught the spirit of the original in this translation.