தூது இலக்கியம், as you know, is a variety of சிற்றிலக்கியம். It deals with messages or தூது sent by lovers. The sender and receiver of the message may be a man or a woman. The sorrow due to separation in love may be the reason for sending the message. The message could be sent through human beings, animals or inanimate objects. The messenger usually asks for a chain or some object of identification from the receiver.

உமாபதி சிவாச்சாரியார் wrote the first தூது இலக்கியம். In his நெஞ்சு விடு தூது, he sent his heart as a messenger to his teacher. Even in தொல்காப்பியம் messages were popular. In Sangam literature, பிசிராந்தையார் sends a message through a swan to his friend, king கிள்ளி. Now there are more than 150 works which belong to தூது இலக்கியம்.

அழகர் கிள்ளை விடுதூது tells us about a message sent by a love born Lord திருமால் or அழகர்; the message is taken by a parrot or கிள்ளை. This work was written by பலபட்டடை சொக்கநாதப்பிள்ளை. The word கிளி has several synonyms which have double meaning. அரி also refers to lord திருமால்; தத்தை also refers to the wife of Jeevakan. வள்ளி also means fire. சுகம் also stands for happiness.

The parrot’s colour is green and its beak is red. The parrot is glorified as having the same colour as ஆலிலை, which is the bed of திருமால், It is also the colour of Goddess Parvathi.

The parrot draws the chariot of மன்மதன், the God of love; and the chariot is nothing but the gentle southern breeze. It eats rice with milk and needs no medicines. It can protect itself from cats and hunters.

The woman, while sending a message through the parrot, describes the great qualities of the lord. She praises ten parts of Lord திருமால்: mountain, river, country, city, garland, elephant, flag, drum and order.

The greatness of Lord திருமால் is described through stories from the Puranas. As Narasimha he took a half lion half human form to kill இரணியன். As Vaman, the lord measured the whole universe in three steps. As Krishna, he killed பூதனை.

அழகர் comes to river வைகை for summer festival. The lady is enamored of his beauty. She says why she can’t send a swan, crow or bee as messenger. She tells the parrot about the right time to give her message. She requests the parrot to bring her the lord’s fragrant garland.