Tamils around the world marked Thai Pongal, the traditional Tamil harvest festival, today as celebrations shone despite coronavirus restrictions.
Tamil Heritage Month began in Canada this week as politicians from across the political spectrum paid tribute to the Tamil community. An online event with cultural performances was held on New Year’s day to mark the start of the month, which will see events held virtually throughout January. “It is a time to recognize and celebrate the many contributions Canadians of Tamil descent have made to Canada, as well as their extraordinary language and culture,” said Bardish Chagger, Canada’s Minister of Diversity and Inclusion and Youth. “Canada is the proud home of one of the world’s largest Tamil...
UofT signing agreement with Toronto Tamil Chair Team The University of Toronto (UofT) has agreed to establish a ground breaking Tamil Chair, after signing an agreement with the Tamil Congress and Tamil Chair Inc. in 2018. The Chair has received an outpour of community support and will be first of its kind in Canada. The Toronto Tamil Chair will be community-funded and has garnered over 1,500 supporters to date. The University of Toronto plans to implement the Chair in its Scarborough Campus. “The partnership between an outstanding global institution like the University of Toronto and the...
Tributes have flooded in this week as yet another Tamil doctor passed away from coronavirus in the UK this week, as coronavirus infections rise across the country. Dr Krishnan Subramanian, a Consultant Anaesthetist at Royal Derby Hospital, passed away on Thursday after contracting coronavirus. Dr Subramaniam joined the trust in 2014 as a Consultant Anaesthetist and was a well loved member of the medical team. Gavin Boyle, Chief Executive of the University Hospitals of Derby and Burton, said it is “a very sad day for the UHDB family” and that “Krishnan was a hugely valued member of the team...
Deepa Mehta's 'Funny Boy' is facing calls for a boycott as criticism mounts over the lack of Tamil representation in the film and Mehta's links to the Rajapaksa regime. The film, which is based on the 1994 novel written by Shyam Selvadurai, follows a queer Tamil boy in the years leading up to the 1983 anti-Tamil pogroms in Colombo, when thousands of Tamils were killed by Sinhala mobs backed by the then UNP government and state forces.
Photograph by Gajan Bala Shan Vincent de Paul who goes by the moniker SVDP, is a Toronto-based Tamil rapper and director. His debut album "Saviors" was released in 2016, followed by his sophomore album "Trigger Happy Heartbreak" in 2017. Shan has released a song from his upcoming album "Made in Jaffna" - titled "One Hundred Thousand Flowers" . The song reflects on the Tamil genocide. It shares name with a foundation newly founded by Shan, which aims to foster music, arts and culture for the Tamil community globally, with an emphasis on youth and those who have been affected by the armed...
The 217th victory day of Pandara Vanniyan, the last sovereign of the Vanni chieftaincy was commemorated last month with fanfare across the Tamil homeland in the North-East. Proceedings began early morning in Vavuniya in the presence of Urban Council Chairman E. Gowthaman who also organised the event last month. People gathered to pay respects to the statue of the chieftain who ruled the Vanni region in the 18th century. Known as the 'Last King of Vanni', he died fighting colonial rule by the Dutch and British. They decorated Pandara Vanniyan’s statue with garlands and ceremonially showered...
Sri Lankan troops have been deployed at the Nallur Kandasamy Temple in Jaffna this week, as the temple’s annual festival – thiruvizha – began last month .
The new moon in Aadi (July) is one of the three most powerful new moons of the year. Devotees honour their ancestors by observing fasts, feeding crows and bathing in large bodies of natural water to rid themselves of their sins.
The annual Nainativu Nagapooshani Amman Temple ‘Ther’ was held on Friday. The historic temple festival was celebrated in its traditionally spectacular fashion with the day commencing with the “Vasantha Mandapam Pooja” at 7am, followed by the chariot being transported to offer blessings to the devotees.