Tamil students and volunteers from Toronto, Canada have set up a free transportation service to help the elderly and others in need during the COVID-19 crisis.

With the coronavirus prompting more nationwide restrictions and lockdowns across the world, it has made it particularly difficult for elderly and immunocompromised individuals to seek medical assistance and to purchase groceries, medications and other necessities. 

A collective of Tamil artists from the diaspora and across the North-East teamed up to celebrate the beauty of the Tamil homeland earlier this year, in a music video that has racked up thousands of views so far.

‘Zha Mann’ or ‘Our Soil’ is a track made by UK-based Tamil artist Santhors, singer S Ravi, rappers C V Laksh and Baveena and a collaboration of Parai drummers, and has over 20,000 hits and counting.

Tamil Guardian caught up with some of the artists involved in the project, to speak about the song, the Tamil music industry and about the Tamil homeland.

In anticipation of Sinamkol’s extended release, director Ranjith Joseph spoke with the Tamil Guardian to provide an insight into how he created Sinamkol, the first film to be directed from a post-war Tamil Eelam perspective.

‘I met fighters and learnt about their pain, and the war’.

A museum showcasing and celebrating Tamil history and culture has been opened in Navatkuli, Jaffna – making it the first time in history that a museum of its kind has been built on the island.  

Thousands of people came together to take part and enjoy the Kite Festival that took place on Tuesday in Valvettithurai (VVT), Jaffna. The annual Thai Pongal kite festival, held on January 14, was celebrated by residents and kite enthusiasts at VVT's Uthayasooriyan coast. 

British Tamil rapper and activist M.I.A received an MBE (Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) for services to music from Prince William at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday, and highlighted how her mother who fled Sri Lanka as a refugee helped stitch the very medal she received.

Tamils in Eelam and around the world celebrated the festival of Thai Pongal on Wednesday.

Sinamkol, a film shot entirely in parts of Tamil Eelam has widely received rave reviews and is currently playing at a number of screens.

Ranjith Joseph, the director described the film as one that importantly “talks about the economic and cultural struggles the Tamils face in Sri Lanka, post the war”. The cast and the production team reflect the range of Eelam Tamils across the globe with cast and crew sourced from the diaspora community and locally. 

The film received praise from numerous members of the film industry. 

Tamil Eelam FA will be among the 16 teams competing in the 2020 Confederation of Independent Football Associations (CONIFA) World Football Cup, after an impressing double victory in the qualifiers powered the team through to the tournament. 

The team played two CONIFA World Football 2020 qualifiers in December against East Turkistan and West Papua. Victory in both games saw Tamil Eelam gain enough points to qualify for the 2020 World Football Cup taking place between 30 May - 7 June 2020 in Skopje, Republic of North Macedonia.