Tamil

Thamizh (that's close to what you can have in English) is close to my heart not because it is my mother tongue but from childhood I have developed an unending crush with it...! This does not mean that I have mastered it and learned all the "kapiams" and other ancient literary works in Tamil.


When I was a student, I did not have any qualms about being in "Tamil Medium" when most of our family circles would brag about being in "English Medium". Also I had the flair for that language that I used to be very attentive in Tamil lectures and participate in "Kural" reciting, "thirupavai/thiruvempavai" recitals... etc. I go to hear recitals,lectures, debates(patimandram) and "kathakalakshepams", a typical discourse in which lecture and vocal music is used.



I had a flair for "Yapu Ilakkanam", ie Tamil grammer section in which I used to fair very well. Once in an exam hall all my fellow students copied my answers and got "better"scores..!


I had written some poems in tamil during my college days besides trying my hand in stories writing. The first ever attempt I made in writing a story was published in "Idhayam Pesukirathu", a weekly magazine in the year 1983!


I had also got selected as a "Casual Announcer" by All India Radio for announcement in Tamil.



The foregoing were although intended to show my love for the language, make a reading of self praise only!



Now coming to the unique aspect of Tamil, I learnt from a Tamil scholar whilst talking to him, that Tamil is perhaps the only language(some one told me Arabic has the same trait) in that you can talk or write without using a "Verb"(which include simple verb or composite verb).


For e.g. you can describe a person as good by saying: "Avan Nallavan" here two nowns are only used where as when you want to say this in English you say" He is (a)Gentleman"... You cannot coin a sentence or speak without using "is, was, or adding a composite verb in a sentence.

I have a friend who is attempting to write the great tamil work, the "Thirukural" in English. Several people have written it in English but what he is attempting is to present it in English using only 7 words in all for a couplet like the original couplets (in all 1330), each having 7 words only.

He told me that he could do about 50 kurals in English so far. His major challenge was to circumvent the requirement of using verbs which were coming in the way of arriving at the litrary equivalent of the couplets by using only 7 English word substitutes.


Will continue about Tamil in subsequent series, and, in the meanwhile, I would await the readers' comments.

Subu(nick name in tamil-"Pasu")