Chennai: For Malayalees in the city who want to stay connected to their mother tongue, the language classes conducted by Thiruvanmiyur Kerala Samajam (TKS), come as a boon.
According to Mohan Das, an office-bearer of TKS, “The sessions are held under the guidance of the Kerala government’s Malayalam Mission, which is an initiative to help Malayalees living outside the State learn the language. We have been running it for years but in between, it had to be suspended due to lack of teachers. Only those trained by the Mission are eligible to conduct classes.”
He added that the move is getting a lot of positive response and that a person of any age can join.
Ramzana, a teacher from Thiruvallur Nagar, says, “Apart from alphabets, we teach Kerala history, its economics, its role in Indian independence, politics, education and almost everything about the State. The text book given by the government is called ‘kanikonna’ and comes along with a prescribed syllabus. We start the classes with activities. Now we have 22 students, out of which three are Tamilians and four Keralites who are alien to the language. This is a ten year course and at the end of it, the certificate issued is equal to a Kerala SSLC.”
She said that the students are encouraged to speak in Malayalam. “The participants take a lot of interest to come here on Sundays too. They have group activities, drama, folk songs, poetry and more. The classes are held every Sunday from 10.30 am to 12 pm at Valmiki Street, Thiruvanmiyur,” she concluded.
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