Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (DV)
Mangalore, Jul 27: The Karnataka Tulu Sahitya Academy presented its honorary and book awards for the year 2012 at a ceremony held at Ravindra Kala Mantapa here on Saturday July 26.
The honorary awards were conferred on Jayanthi S Bangera, Rohidas Kadri, and Richard Castelino, for their contribution in the field of literature, theatre, and cinema, respectively. The book awards were conferred on Semanthooru Chandrahas Suvarna, Ramanath Kotekar, and K E Radhakrishna for their contributions in the field of poetry, research, and story-writing, respectively.
After conferring the awards, U T Khadar, state minister for health and family welfare, said, "Tulu language, traditions, and culture have its own history. Literature is like a window and we can see great works only if we look through it. There are various demands from the Tulu Academy. Along with district in-charge minister, we will ask the state government to increase the annual grant to Rs 1 crore. Tulu writers are the asset of this Tulu land. There are several great people who have sacrificed their life for this land. They should be a role model for our youth."
MP Nalin Kumar Kateel, after releasing the book written by Amruth Someshwar on the history of Rani Abbakka said, "Today is Aati Amavasya, a special day for people of Tulunadu. I have raised the issue of renaming the airport as Srinivas Mallya Airport in the Lok Sabha and Mangalore Port as Rani Abbakka Port and I have also pushed for the inclusion of Tulu in the 8th Schedule. We can preserve Tulu only if we talk Tulu at home and teach the language to our children. Someshwar has done great work by writing a book about Rani Abbakka's history in Tulu. It will reach every home in Tulunadu."
Someshwar also spoke on this occasion and said, "People should read the book and send me the feedback. I have written this book in Kannada, and now have translated it into Tulu."
Richard Castellino said, "Just as the government is supporting Tulu films, it should also support documentaries."