About RMRL

The library is named after the late Roja Muthiah who had originally collected about 50,000 books and 50,000 other items like periodicals, ephemera, wedding invitations, pamphlets and clippings. Roja Muthiah of Kottaiyur in Tamil Nadu’s Sivagangai district was a sign-board artist. Immediately after his premature death in 1992, the University of Chicago (UoC) launched a global effort to save the collection. It was moved to Chennai and institutionalised in 1994. Subsequently, in 2004, the RMRL Trust was formed and an MoU was signed with the UoC for the maintenance of the collection. After the objectives of the MoU were met, the entire collection was transferred to the RMRL Trust to expand, maintain, and carry out its objectives.

RMRL, which has taken up several preservation projects, was initially funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Ford Foundation, the Wellcome Trust for the History of Understanding Medicine, the Endangered Archives Project, the TATA Trusts, the India Foundation for the Arts, the National Archives of India, the Tamil Nadu Government and several individuals and CSR initiatives.

RMRL expanded its activities from collection, development, cataloguing and preservation of books to conserving books and conducting public lectures, seminars, exhibitions and research activities. RMRL started the Indus Research Centre (in 2007) and the Centre for Study in Public Sphere (in 2021).

Now the library functions on the premises that have been leased to it by the Government of Tamil Nadu. The State government supports the library with recurring grants since 2023 to sustain some of its major library activities.

RMRL is considered to be a culturally significant institution that showcases the civilisational heritage of Tamil and brings people together on a common platform for intellectual deliberation. The organisation collaborates with world-renowned institutions and is in line with best practices of activities relating to libraries, archives and museum

Tamil Knowledge Campus - An initiative of RMRL

With thirty years of experience behind it, RMRL has embarked on a rebranding exercise. As part of this initiative, a Tamil Knowledge Campus housing all the activities of RMRL. It will take two years to accomplish this exercise. The eastern view of the proposed building is presented below. The total budget for the project is INR 30 Crores. Several Corporates, Foundations, Philanthropists, Tamil Diaspora and the Government of Tamil Nadu have agreed to support this. We intend to start the construction process in the first week of February 2025. We are expecting to obatain all the necessary approvals before this.

Proposed TKC building

History

1994

The university of chicago (UOC) launches a global initiative to save the private collection of the late Roja Muthaiah of Kottaiyur by purchasing it.

2005

UoC gifts the collection to the Roja Muthiah Research Library trust.

2007

Iravatham Mahadevan advises RMRl to set up the Indus Research Centre.

2010

The Government of Tamil Nadu leases out the current premises as a permanent home to expand the collection. The notable collections include those of Mu.Arunachalam, Thanjai Prakash, Te.po. Meenakshi Sundaram, Susan and Lloyd Rudolph and the UoC.

2015

The Navajbai Ratan Tata Trust provides a major grant to set up a full-fledged studio for conservation of Library material.

2019

RMRL publishes its first book ‘Journey of a Civilization:Indus to Vaigai’ authored by R.Balakrishnan.

2021

RMRL opens a new research facility called the Centre for Study in Public Sphere to map the journey of modern Tamil Nadu and its social transformation.