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Regional languages have their space in the cyberworld

A growing army of Tamil bloggers has ensured that regional language users have their say on the Web

Photos: K. Ananthan

A new world beckons Tamil blogs

Demure-looking Vidya, a transgender, has had a tough life. Despite being a postgraduate, she ended up begging on trains and public places to keep herself going. All this, before a blog changed her life. Balabharathi, an acquaintance who regularly blo gged in Tamil, helped her post her first message a year ago.

Those lines helped her break free of the shackles that bound her. And, in the process, aided hundreds of Tamil bloggers to open their minds to the plight of transgenders.

Vidya knew English, but not enough to express herself. And, till Tamil blogs happened, she did not know how to tell the world stories about people like her.

The very vocal Balabharathi, who had studied till Class X, has an opinion on every issue but cannot write fluently in English. “But, I need to express myself. My Tamil is good. Should I not be given an opportunity to let the world know what I think?” This, coupled with the relative ease with which it is possible to type in Tamil, is driving a growing number of people, age no bar, to Tamil blogs. “That’s true,” agrees S. Muguntharaj, creator of eKalappai, one of the free softwares that makes typing in Tamil a breeze.

The opportunity to write in Tamil helps many people fulfil their desire to express themselves in their mother tongue. ‘Osai’ Chella, motivator and long-time blogger, is a regular in English blogs. A year ago, he started writing in Tamil ( www.osaichella.blogspot.com). “Since it is my mother tongue, the feelings are more genuine. And, this is a wonderful opportunity to write Tamil in day-to-day life. It vastly improves vocabulary and spellings. And, the responses are often moving.” Recently, he launched his audio blog www.osai.tamil.net). “Audio lends a personal touch. Moreover, a lot of NRI children face difficulty reading Tamil texts. And, with a speaker or amplifier, the whole family can hear the blog,” he remarks.

For Vidya, blogs provide the space she so badly craves for in the real world. “This is my platform. I have learnt a lot here. Like people write about politics and cinema, I write about the third gender,” she says. In her space, www.livingsmile.blogspot.com, she has conducted campaigns against the wrong portrayal of transgenders in films. And, thanks to the courage she derived from her writings, Vidya, who has undergone a sex change surgery, moved the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court to change her name and gender.

Balabharathi ( www.balabharathi.blogspot.com) admits he is an oatavaaikaaran. Blogs, he says, have allowed him to interact with more people like him. “I am not educated, but I have seen a lot in life that I like to talk about. Luckily, writing came naturally.”

But, these blogs are not entirely free of bad elements. “Since people from all age groups blog, we try and rein in our writing when it comes to sex,” says Balabharathi, who says, of late, they have started moderating the comments so that obscene language can be expunged.

What gives him complete satisfaction is the difference bloggers are able to make in people’s lives. Recently, they got together to raise funds for the education of a girl pursuing her post-graduation.

For Pamaran ( www.pamaran.wordpress.com), who has ruffled quite a few feathers in his avatar as writer, Tamil blogs are a godsend. “I have been writing for 21 years, and it was a one-way traffic all along. I did not know what a cross-section of the readers felt. It is a different journey now; based on the feedback, I can even hone my writing skill,” he says.

SUBHA J RAO

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