Mayavanathan was a Tamil poet and lyricist in Tamil Cinema.
He was born on 16 April 1936 in Poolankulam, a village near Alangulam in present-day Tenkasi district of Tamil Nadu.
Mayavanathan died on 6 August 1971 in Madras. His body was taken to Poolangulam for the funeral. Kannadasan was one of the mourners.