Thiruvalluvar is hailed as one of the most important and proficient poets in the history of Tamil literature. Also known as the 'Divine Poet', Thiruvalluvar is said to be the greatest Tamil scholar. However, information about his life and times is very limited. Oe theory says that he belonged to a family of weavers, while another states that he belonged to a family of agriculturalists. What is known with surety is that he the 133 chapters of the Thirukkural (short poetry) which include 1330 verses. In order to commemorate the works of this gifted writer, M. Karunanidhi built the Valluvar Kottam in 1975-76 and it has been a modern landmark of Chennai ever since.