Latest news with #TheTamils
The Hindu
13 hours ago
- General
- The Hindu
Delving into multiple layers of Tamil identity
The rich repository of Tamil heritage and culture has largely remained invisible to the wider world, said Nirmala Lakshman, Publisher and Chairperson of The Hindu Group of Publications, speaking at a discussion on her book The Tamils, at the Bangalore International Centre here. Ms. Lakshman described how it took her four years of multiple journeys across Tamil Nadu, studying, researching and listening to stories of people, to come up with the book. 'I spoke to epigraphists, historians, experts as well as ordinary people who generously shared their experiences, their sense of culture and tradition, and I discovered that multiple narratives coexisted,' she noted. It was during this journey, Ms. Lakshman said, that she realised how a large part of it still remained unknown to the larger world. 'Many expert voices had not been heard outside of Tamil Nadu and Tamil world which led me to realise that the wealth of knowledge of the rich repository of Tamil heritage and culture has not been visible to larger world, and the nuanced and better-informed reading of Tamil history and society as seen through their eyes could be highlighted in my book.' 'Through The Tamils, I hope to convey my personal insights to what I have learned about Tamil culture, history and literature to an audience of not just Tamil people, but also to non-Tamil speaking people everywhere,' she further added. Connection to roots The discussion, moderated by Ranvir Shah, founder of Prakriti Foundation, and introduced by Ramachandra Guha, writer and historian, delved into multiple aspects that have shaped the Tamil identity. 'The Tamil diaspora is as strong in Tamil as people in Tamil Nadu are. In places like Malaysia, there is a thirst to know more about one's roots,' said Ms. Lakshman, who further added that the research for the book was a journey of discovery for her too. According to her, Tamils, as with many other communities, are a complex demographic and carry with them a weight of history that goes back several millennia. Pointing out that there are about 90 million people across the world who identify themselves as Tamil, she recollected how, when she visited places like Malaysia, the diaspora there expressed a strong desire to know more about their roots, despite having migrated at least three generations ago. The essence 'In this book, I tried to find that Tamil essence as I weave through history and story, talking to a wide spectrum of people. So that in that sense it's an anecdotal and personal journey,' Ms. Lakshman remarked while further adding that today, a Tamil in Tamil Nadu is no more a Tamil than a Tamil in Malaysia or Sri Lanka or Canada.
The Hindu
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Nirmala Lakshman to discuss ‘The Tamils' at BIC on June 17 )
Around 90 million-strong today, the community of Tamils is not only spread across India but is a growing global diaspora which hold on to their distinct cultural identity even as they fan out. Nirmala Lakshman, in her book The Tamils, chronicles the journey of this civilisation from the Stone Age and the Sangam era to the Bhakti movement and colonial history. On June 17, Ms. Lakshman, Publisher and Chairperson of The Hindu Group of Publications, will engage in a discussion on her book with Ranvir Shah, cultural activist, philanthropist and businessman, at the Bangalore International Centre (BIC). Ramachandra Guha, writer and historian, will do the introduction. The discussion will not only explore the themes of the book but also examine the Tamil identity in the 21st century, its evolution through intersections of caste, religion and gender, and how modernity and migration have given the culture newer meanings as the community across the globe continues to adapt and thrive. Ms. Lakshman, who founded and edited The Hindu Literary Review, conceptualised and created Young World, India's only children's newspaper supplement, and launched Lit for Life, The Hindu's annual literature festival. She is also the author of Degree Coffee by the Yard. Mr. Shah founded the Prakriti Foundation in 1998 with the idea of enlivening Chennai's cultural arena through scholarly discourses, multi-media events, experimental and protest cinema, music festivals and contemporary dance performances. Dr. Guha is a public intellectual whose research interests range from political and environmental history to cricket history. The programme begins at 6.30 p.m. and entry is free.
