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Education Plus
Promoting Tulu folk art
RAVIPRASAD KAMILA
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Mangalore University plans to open study centre
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Glorious past: A Tulu folk game, “Chennemane,” re-enacted
Folk arts and games of Tulunadu are all set to get an academic patronage with Mangalore University proposing to set up a centre for their studies and research. The university has also planned to offer a post-graduate diploma course in yoga therapy through correspondence.
Mangalore University’s Academic Council has approved the statute relating to setting up of the study centre and regulations governing the proposed post-graduate diploma course. The university can take steps to set up the centre and offer the course if the Chancellor (Governor) approves these proposals.
Tulu language, folk art, games and other cultural activities have attracted the attention of foreign scholars since 1856.
According to a report by the Karnataka Tulu Sahitya Academy, Robert Caldwell in his work ‘A Comparative Grammar of the Dravidian Languages’, in 1856, said: “Tulu is one the most highly developed of the Dravidian family of the languages.”
The Dravidian University, Kuppam, opened a department of Tulu language and translation studies in 2007 to study the language and culture.
The Kannada Department at Mangalore University has been studying different aspects of Tulu culture and language for more than two decades.
In addition, it has a study chair related to Tulu. But the proposed centre will focus primarily on studying the Tulu folk art and games.
The preamble of the “Statute Relating to the Establishment of Centre for Studies and Research in Folk Arts and Games of Tulu-nadu” said that the university has proposed to set up this centre as people in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Kasaragod (Kerala) districts have evinced interest in that regard.
It said that folk dances constituted a major part of Tulu folklore. There are more than 20 such dances. Some of them are “Dudi kunita” (drum dance), “Aati kalenja”, “Karangolu”, “Sonada jogi”, “Siddavesha”, “Kangilu” (all magical hero folk dances), “Pili-panji kunita” (tiger and pig dance), “Maadira” (women folk dance), and “Gondola” (ritual dance).
These dances are seasonal in nature and function as cultural identities of ethnic groups, including Nalike, Mugera, Gowda, Naika and Mansa. Most of these dances are now under threat due to urbanisation.
Some of the folk games are “kambala” (slush track buffalo race), “chendu” (football), “chennemane” (a board game), games played by children such as “huli-dana” (tiger and cow), “kage-gili” (crow and parrot), “jubuli” (bille game), “baleyata” (bangle game) and “lagori”.
The centre has proposed to document all of them. It has also aimed to promote the myriad folk games that have gone into oblivion, set up an archive and museum to preserve their richness.
PG diploma in yoga
The duration of the course is one year. The medium of instruction will be either English or Kannada. There will be two contact programmes of 21days duration a year.
Candidates who have completed graduation from any university may apply.
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