Prosperity in Tulunadu is the result of monsoon

        Being a student from other state I was very happy to be welcomed by the monsoon rain in Mangalore. My experience goes back to those days when I participated in the rain contest conducted at our residence in 2012. The rain fall used to go easily up to 12.8cm and so on. When I visited some part of Dakshina Kannada the experience in monsoon was memorable one because I used play in the water fall, take bath, click photos, etc. The fields were filled with plenty of water and the paddy cultivation used to cover the entire land. Gushing water in the river used to attract the travelers. This was and is the state of Tulunadu where we could hardly find plants drying and water scarcity leaving the people experience drought.

                                                     

      Though coconut and other trees including houses get damaged due to the landslides at times there is life in abundance everywhere. The issue of Nethravathi river diversion is nothing but people’s over confidence in assuming that there is enough water which can be diverted for other purposes. The dispute of Cauvery River between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka gives us wider understanding that the state has sufficient water even to supply to other states. Therefore monsoon plays a vital role in the prosperity of Tulunadu.  The city has high yielding cash crops which fetches the people of Tulunadu more fortunes. The business and other industries keep thriving because of the maximum utility of monsoon rain.

        The place is blessed with Western Ghats which is major source to support the growth of the people of Tulunadu. But everyone needs to become aware of the corporate presence which might grab the cultivation land from the ordinary peasants. For instance, the question of SEZ in Mangalore can be a bigger threat.

                                                    

Suggi-a season that cannot be forgotten in Tulunadu

       ‘Suggi’ visits the people of Tulunadu once a year like the King Mahabali in the state of Kerala. A season that gives life to millions of people also is the season most cherished by the people of Tulunadu.    With mouthful of betel leaves and tobacco, wearing muttale (a type of cap made of arcanut leaves) the men and women went to the fields to harvest ‘Suggi Crops’ or the seasonal crops. This was the lives of the people of Tulunadu which produced rice to feed for everyone’s need.

        ‘Suggi madona baroa,’ Suggi koyyare poi,’ Olarya akkanakule, olarya annanakule’ are some of the folk songs that the women sing and do harvesting. They are sung for time pass but have meaning which is composed with the words of heart. There was joy among people because they had trust in the nature and God’s benevolence.

But over the years the trust and even God’s gift to the people are hijacked by the rich and corporate. New machineries and technologies have driven the people away from their right to work and left them poor.  Even the ‘Suggi Kunita’ groups who go on dancing to earn their share at this time of harvesting are getting disappeared due to the unfortunate situation.

        Suggi is best reminded by the festival of ‘Holi’ which is very fitting to celebrate the joy of harvesting in different ways. It falls in the month of March. During this month on the day or four days before the full moon, one of the tribal groups called ‘Haalakki Vakkaliga’ performs ‘Suggi Kunita’ with a beautiful decoration.  These creative folk artists collect cash and grains and celebrate the fortunes in their life as well as in the life of people. 

Laterite stone makes Tulunadu a unique place

       Mangalore is self sufficient in producing a lot of materials that are indispensable for its people. Being a non- Mangalorian I find that a number of things one can speak about why Mangalore is a unique place. One of the many things could be 'Laterite or Red Stone.' It is a stone which is naturally carved out or cut out from huge rocks could be one of the significant contributions of the ancestors of Tulunadu. 

     The geographical shape of the land (valleys and mountains), multi-culture and lingual, tiles, cash nuts, coconut, areca nut, red stone or laterite stone etc. are some of them are the exclusive material of Tulunadu or Dakshina Kannada. Red stone (as called by the local people) is triple the size of a brick which is used in most of the states of India.

       On the other hand, there is one thing that is very common and visible but ignored by people is ‘Laterite stone.’ The stone which is special to Mangalore is used by people all. What unifies is that whether they are tallest building or small traditional houses such as Gothumane are all built using ‘Laterite stone.’ The stone may look breakable but proved solid by everyone. The stone have high demand because they made difference in Tulunadu. The size of the stone was originally 18x9x6 at the time of British rule but today the contractors have reduced the size into 16x9x6 or 13x8.5x7 for their business interest. Though the size is reducing yet the price has shot up from Rs.15 to Rs. 22 as noted by M Purushotham Kottary, President, and Civil Contractor Association.  

Bisu-is the beginning of life and celebration

      Bisu means a lot to the people especially of Tulunadu. But the same day which falls in the second week of April is an auspicious day for many of the Southern states because it is considered as the FIRST DAY of their calendar.

    The significance that people have attached to this day tells us about the deepest desire. One of the important parts of the event in ‘Bisu’ is Vishukkani.  But the meaning that the people of Tulunadu have attached to it is, ‘The first thing seen on the day of Bisu. It means a lot the people for one reason. That is unity which is drawn through the means of ‘hard work.’ When you and I have the desire to see some good things on an auspicious day like Bisu we work for it. The fruits, beetle leaves,  holy texts, rice, arecanut, yellow flowers, vegetables, lamp, etc are kept in the prayer hall to say a word to God that there is prosperity in our lives and for which we are thankful. Therefore Bisu is a blessing for the ones who wants to begin the year meaningfully and joyfully. It is an invitation to have the spirit of sharing and hard working so that the meaning of Bisu is reflected throughout the year.

    This Tuluva New Year is mostly celebrated in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi because of the Tuluvas presence. But the same name, with different spelling is celebrated in Kerala. The joy of celebration brings the people as one family is quite distinct. 

Can Culture of Tulunadu be compared to Big Bang Theory?

       Anybody who has experienced the culture of Tulunadu would agree with me that it has a nature of Big Bang theory. Centuries back there was something called ‘Tulu Culture,’ which would not have been realized today without the nature of Big Bang theory. The idea of Big bang theory is that the particle has origin which caused the universe. This aspect I see in the Tulu culture which caused further exploration. Tulunadu has prospered for its nature of keeping the tradition alive. The agrarian society never stopped cultivation and as a result it started contributing the nation's economy. There are cash crops, paddy and other business like fishing pushed them to move forward. 
     The nature of perseverance, hard works and business skills was the ultimate source of human power which caused the growth of Tulunadu. They keep developing the art and culture which is so unique of Tulunadu. They have become part and parcel of the life of Tulu people. As N.P. Shetty said that the tuluvas are those who speak more than those who are born in this land.

Tulu Script - A Vehicle for the progress of Tulu

         A language can be seen as a river of thoughts and expressions. Human thoughts, feelings, ideas, opinioins, etc take shape in the form of simple words that take flight with the use of language. Language takes deep root into our personality. Isnt it common to see people identifying themselves to a particular language and a culture so easily? It wouldn't be wrong to say that language interacts with every human being at a very deeper level. Remove language from our history and there wouldn't be any trace of history. The importance of language cannot go more higher than this.

      Language is like a river, but in order to be alive, language needs to flow like the river. A river that does not flow is lifeless. There is a need for literature and art to add beauty and new dimension to language. This is where a script for a language becomes a need. Any language can appeal and speak to people when it has a distinct script of its own.

      It is sad to note that a seperate Tulu script is not in common use today. Spoken Tulu language is more popular in Dakshina Kannada, Kasargod, Udupi and the surrounding places than its script. Tulu gets written in Kannada script even though Tulu has a seperate script which is not familiar to Tulu speakers. The unique Tulu script has remained in the domain of books and researchers in Tulu language. There is a need to bring out the script into the lives of the common people and popularise Tulu script. Moreover there must be simultaneous and ongoing efforts made to educate Tulu speakers and lovers to use it more and more. This would increase the beauty and the value of Tulu. 

Moodabidri is an important place of Tulunadu

Moodabidri is one of the unique places of Tulunadu called ‘Temple Town’. It attracts a lot of tourists from all over the world. There are number of significant spots that one cannot afford to miss in Moodabidri. Jain temples, thousand pillars of Tribhuvana Tilaka Chudamani Basadi, variety of bamboos and medicinal plants, 16^th century Portuguese built church and so on.