Culture & Community

Culture & Community

Latest news from and about the homeland

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The annual Mahotsavam, or grand festival, of the historic Thiruketheeswaram temple in Mannar concluded last month with the Theertham ceremony, drawing thousands of devotees to one of the most ancient sites of Tamil Saivism on the island. Thiruketheeswaram is revered as one of the five Pancha Ishwarams, the ancient coastal temples dedicated to Lord Shiva that ring the island, and it is among…

Paddy Field

Paddy Field

Words that hold the world together
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Breaths that rip apart air textures

Tamil talent takes centre stage at LSE



‘Raise Your Voice’, an event held by the Tamil Student Initiative (tsi) to showcase and empower emerging creative talent, proved to be an apt reminder of the growing creative versatility within the Tamil student community.

Rwandan Tamils celebrate heritage

The Tamil Sangam Rwanda held celebrations earlier this month, paying tribute to their Tamil heritage in an evening of cultural performances and traditional cuisine.

Taking place in Kigali, dozens of Tamils gathered to participate in traditional festivities, which included bharatanatyam dance performances and koothu-style drama re-enactments.

Glitz, glamour and culture at Mega Maalai XIV

British students from across the country came together to watch a variety show that masterfully blended Tamil culture with glitz and glamour at ‘Mega Maalai XIV’. Photograph courtesy of Bee Sounds

Tamil youth worldwide celebrate Thai Pongal

Tamil youth took part in Thai Pongal festivities this week, celebrating the ancient Tamil harvest festival, in locations all across the world.

CTYA celebrates Canadian Tamil youth success

The Canadian Tamil Youth Alliance (CTYA), held its 4th annual ‘Top Talents Awards Gala', in December to conclude a successful 2013 for Canadian Tamil youth.

Photo:Ninaivukal

The CTYA committee carefully selected members of the Canada Tamil youth community who had excelled in various fields such as music, business, arts, sports, academia and many more.

Speaking to Tamil Guardian on the importance of celebrating youth success, the Vice President of CTYA, Tarchini Vallepuram, said,

“Investing in our youth is essential for the overall growth of our community and broader society. Through recognition and inspiration, our youth will get motivated to pursue their dreams and reach even greater achievements.”
Full list of awards winners below.

Barts students shocked by No Fire Zone documentary

After a successful Breaking The Silence genocide awareness campaign,  Barts Tamil Society held a screening of the Channel 4 Documentary, 'No Fire Zone', followed by a question and answer session with director Callum Macrae.

The documentary left a fully packed lecture hall stunned into silence for minutes after the end of the film.

Responding to questions on what the outcome may have been for Tamils in the North-East if the LTTE had retained control of Vaani, Macrae said,

"The peace process of 2002 was relatively successful, and the Tigers themselves were successful in improving in a number of human rights issues for their people, including eradicating caste, improving women's rights etc. However it is questionable if peace talks could have been successful considering the impact of 9/11. The event swayed the balance of support and the military campaign against the Tamils was seen as a 'war on terror; which allowed Rajapaksa along with complicit members of the international community to go on, with this rhetoric enabling what was seen as the final solution."