Delhi govt sets up and notifies academy to promote Tamil language and culture

"Delhi is a culturally rich city where people from all parts of the country live and work," said Deputy CM Manish Sisodia.

File Photo

New Delhi: The Department of Art, Culture & Language of the Delhi government, under the leadership of Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, on Sunday (January 3, 2021) set up and notified Tamil academy to promote Tamil language and culture. The Delhi government has appointed Ex-MCD councillor and current member of Delhi Tamil Sangam N Raja as the Vice-Chairman of the academy. The newly set-up academy will soon be allocated an office space with all the necessary infrastructure.

"Delhi is a culturally rich city where people from all parts of the country live and work. It is this diversity that forms Delhi's vibrant and cosmopolitan culture. Delhi has a large population of people from Tamil Nadu and we want to present a platform to the people of Delhi to get the taste of the art and culture of Tamil Nadu. I am glad that many notable people like the newly elected Vice-Chairman Shri N. Raja came forward and joined hands with us to establish this academy," said Deputy CM Manish Sisodia who also holds the charge of the Art, Culture and Language Department. 

On the occasion, N Raja said, “I am glad to see that the Delhi Government under Deputy CM Sisodia has established the Tamil language academy. I am honoured to be a part of this academy. The Tamil language and culture have a long tradition in the history of Indian culture as well as in Delhi. With the formation of this academy, we will kickstart a new journey of preserving the language in Delhi and promote it too.

Awards, festivals and language courses to be introduced under the new academy

The Department of Art, Culture and Language of the Delhi govt has decided that the new academy will introduce various awards to promote and reward the good works of people in Tamil language and culture. The government will also provide language courses through this academy. The Delhi government will also celebrate and organise cultural festivals for the people of Tamil Nadu. 

Tamil culture

The culture of the Tamil people is rooted in several forms of expression such as dance, music, literature, folk arts. Being the birthplace for one of the oldest civilisations, the Tamil identity and its culture is strongly centred around its language which is fondly referred to as the Tamilannai (The Tamil Mother).

The Tamil language is recognised as a classical language by the Indian government and a lot of Tamil literature is centuries old. Works of Kambar and Thiruvalluvar have gained an international reputation.

The most prominent visual art forms of the region are the Chola bronze sculptures and the Tanjore painting, both of which are considered to be one of India’s greatest contributions to world art.

Most Tamil dance forms have origins in the older temple dances, which were performed by Devdasis and courtesans. One of such dance forms is Bharatanatyam, which is a modern form of the ancient dance of Catir Kacceri. Some other important dances from the culture are Oliyattam, Puliyattam, Karakattam, and Koothu.

Bio of N Raja 

N Raja has a longstanding involvement in preserving and promoting the Tamil language and culture. He has been actively promoting the language through the Delhi Tamil Sangam, of which he is a current member.

The Delhi Tamil Sangam frequently organises music, literary and dance events to promote the culture of Tamil Nadu, and has provided the stage to several budding Bharatnatyam dancers as well as its exponents, which is the classical dance form of the state.

In addition to this, Raja is also a member of the Malai Mandir Trust and has held the position of MCD councillor of ward no 64 twice, from 2007 to 2018. He also holds the position of General Secretary of the Adarsh Navyuvak Ramlila Committee (Regd.)