COIMBATORE: The International Institute of Dravidian Linguistics in Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala is willing to translate Tamil literary works into Kannada, Telugu and Malayalam, said Puthusseri Ramachandran, honorary professor of the Institute, here on Friday.
Speaking to TheHindu on the sidelines of the World Classical Tamil Conference (WCTC), he explained: “This is in response to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi's call on Thursday for translating Tamil literary works into other languages.”
A poet and writer, Mr. Ramachandran has done extensive research on the evolution of the Dravidian languages. “We have the expertise and the infrastructure to carry out the translation. This will be discussed by the institute's board and a formal proposal will be sent to the Tamil Nadu government,” he said.
Translation was important to enable each linguistic section understand the language and culture of the other. As a first step, at least the States in South India, which was the cradle of the Dravidian culture, should know each other through their literary works.
“I hope to meet Mr. Karunanidhi during the ongoing conference to discuss the proposal and also compliment him on the conduct of the WCTC that is witnessing absolute devotion on the part of Tamils to their language and culture,” he said.
“The conference in Coimbatore makes me feel pained that the struggle to get classical language status for Malayalam is yet to meet with success. A delegation led by Kerala Chief Minister C. Achuthanandan had submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Experts will study the memorandum,” he said. Mr. Ramachandran was part of the delegation.
The 83-year-old researcher and critic on Dravidian languages argued that even if a language was living and evolving, the classical status would only enhance its value through various promotional efforts.
“The Central government provides Rs.100 crore as grant, with the condition that enough studies on and the promotion of the language, declared as classical, must be done.”
The funds would certainly enable the setting up of institutions and other infrastructure necessary for the development of language. From short stories to Internet, the use of a language could be enhanced.
“Take for instance journalism, which is also a medium of learning for the people. Language plays a significant role in disseminating information through various forms of media,” he pointed out.
Turning to the situation in Kerala, Mr. Ramachandran said he led the efforts in conducting the first All India Conference on Dravidian Linguistics in Thiruvananthapuram in 1971 because “we felt there was a need for Malayalam teachers to interact with their counterparts in other languages. So, we held the first World Malayalam Conference in 1977.”
He lamented that the passion and dedication the Tamils had for their language and culture was missing in Kerala. “Malayalees must learn from Tamils.”
“Even 33 years after the conference was held, Kerala still does not have a Malayalam University, in sharp contrast to the language universities of other southern States,” he pointed out.
The younger generation is not encouraged to learn Malayalam. The focus was on learning only that language which would fetch jobs overseas. This rocked the very foundation of the Malayalee culture. “I plan to bring out an English version of my book on inscriptions in Kerala's history because there were very few takers for the original seminal work in Malayalam.”
“Now, we need to first educate the politicians and the elite of Kerala on the need to develop the language. Quite a number of people should also be educated on the fact that Malayalam is 1,500 years old and that it did not emerge from Thunjath Ezhuthachan's ‘Adyathma Ramayanam',” he said.
Asked if the classical language status was becoming an instrument for political one-upmanship, Mr. Ramachandran said: “The passion for one's own language and the pursuit for a classical status should be independent of politics.
At the same time, a healthy competition among political formations for obtaining this status for their language is always welcome.”
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