more-in Last year, a group of retired principals, headmasters and bank officials, all non-Malayalees, enrolled for an eight-month certificate course in Malayalam to learn the commonalities between Tamil and Kerala culture. The Coimbatore Malayali Samajam has been conducting the certificate course in Malayalam language along with the State Resource Centre, Kerala ( Under the Ministry of Human Resources Development, Government of India). “Be it the Onam festival, farming or some of the wise old sayings, there is so much in common in all the South Indian languages,” observes E.C. Sabu who teaches this course. He has close to three decades of teaching Malayalam in the city and is also the vice-principal of CMS Higher Secondary School. A new batch will begin in the last week of June. “This year, it is the 29th batch of students. Our students include businessmen, media people, home makers and college students who come to learn for various reasons. Some of them want to communicate and better with their Malayalee neighbours. Businessmen learn it to reach out better to their clients across the border. One of my students is a polyglot, familiar with seven languages. He wanted to increase his tally to eight with Malayalam,” says Sabu. Many of the learners have read Tamil translations of the Malayalam literary figures like Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai, M.T. Vasudevan Nair, O.N.V. Kurup, and Vaikom Mohammed Basheer. They now want to revisit the stories in their original language, Malayalam. Others simply want to enjoy Malayalam films! The added attraction is the short-duration of the course, in a matter of eight months, one can learn to read, write and converse in Malayalam. No previous knowledge is necessary. “As there is no bar on age or educational qualification, we have students who are as young as 10 years and to someone who is over 80.” Sabu says the course has become a melting pot of cultures giving rise to new friendships. “The hard work and dedication of my students keeps me going. And, their stories of how the knowledge helped them improve their business ties or just board the right bus to reach a destination makes it all worth it!” Info you can use Regular classes will be conducted during the weekends at CMS Auditorium, 9th Street Extension, 100 Ft Road, Gandhipuram. Those who wish to join can apply before June 25. Applications are availabel at CMS Office in Gandhipuram and CMS School in Ganapathy For more details, call: 0422-2524977/ 94864-778891

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