G. P. Rajarathnam
Born	5 December 1909 Gundlupet, Chamrajnagar, Karnataka, India
Died	1979 (aged 70)
Pen name	Bhramara
Occupation	Story writer, lyricist, author, poet, translator, editor
Language	Kannada, Pali, Prakrit, English
Nationality	Indian
Alma mater	Master of Arts
Genre	Children's literature, Biography criticism, interpretation, fiction, prayers and devotions, poetry
Notable works	Rathnana Padagalu, Nagana Padagalu
Spouse	Lalithamma, Seethamma
Relatives	Sridhar (son)Shaila Sridhar Rajarathnam (daughter-in-law)Srimathi Sampathkumar (daughter) and Srilata Vijayakumar (daughter)[1]

G. P. Rajarathnam (1909–1979),^[2] known by his pen name as Bhramara (meaning:Bee),^[3] was a Kannada author, lyricist and poet in Karnataka, India.^[4][5][6] Rajarathnam was well known for composing poems for children. Nissar Ahmed, once quoted as "he understood the minds of children, and their need. Some of his works have remained a challenge for translators even today".^{[7][8][9][10]}

Rajarathnam wrote on Buddhism, Jainism and Islam. A road has been named after him in Bengaluru, of the state.^[11][12]

Personal life

Rajarathnam was born in 1909, in Gundlupet, Chamrajnagar, Karnataka. His ancestors belonged to Tirukkanapur agrahara of Tamil Nadu's Naga city. They migrated to Mysore, Karnataka in 1906. Rajarathnam's wives were Lalithamma and Seethamma.^[13]

Career

Rajarathnam^[14] wrote 230 works in 338 publications^[15] including books such as Rathnana Padagalu (Meaning: Ratna's words)^[16] and Nagana Padagalu (Meaning: Naga's words),^[17] and children's poems such as Nayi Mari Nayi Mari (Meaning: Puppy dog, puppy dog), Bannadha Thagadina Thuthoori (Meaning: Colorful metalfoil trumpet) and Ondhu-Yeardu (Meaning: One-Two). His works were known to be a confluence of all religions.^{[18][19][20][21][22]} He was the teacher of Kannada poet Dr.Shivarudrappa.^[23]