The Samaj was conceived by a few like-minded devotees of Lord Subramania in the
mid-forties in the central suburb of Matunga, the then ‘mini-Madras’ of Mumbai. These
God-loving migrants from the south cherished their cultural heritage based on the bhakti-
cult propounded by our ancient sages and saints. The bhakti-movement of south India
culminated in the propitiation of divinity in all its forms and expression, involving the
community as a whole. It was articulated in the activities of prayer and worship and
exposition of the mythology in temples so that the common man could enrich his daily
and spiritual life. It is in these humble circumstances in the mid-forties that the house of
the late Shri T.V.Lakshmanan (popularly known as ‘Wimco Lakshman’) in Matunga
became the centre of what today exists as the Sri Subramania Samaj, and it continued
to function from that address till 1980. Not having their own place was not an
impediment as the trustees of Sri Sankara Matham and the South Indian Bhajan Samaj
made available their premises and the Municipal Corporation permitted the use of
temporary/make-shift pandals on open grounds, so that important festivals like Skanda
Shashti, Thaipoosam and Panguni Utthiram and cultural events like Harikatha
Kalakshepams and religious discourses could be conducted.
The Samaj was registered under the Societies Act in April 1945 and under the Bombay
public Trust Act in 1951
