kumari kandam is a mythical continent, and therefore, the attempts to mix this myth with tamil history have attracted criticism since the late 19th century. one of the earliest criticisms came from m seshagiri sastri (1897), who described the claims of ante-diluvial sangams as "a mere fiction originated by the prolific imagination of tamil poets." ch monahan wrote a scathing review of suryanarayana sastri's "tamilmoliyin varalaru" (1903), shortly after its publication, accusing the author of "abandoning scientific research for mythology". k. n. sivaraja pillai (1932) similarly stressed on the need to closely examine the historical authenticity of sangam works and their commentaries.