Report: Shodhan Prasad
Dubai, Jul 2: Dr D Veerendra Heggade, Dharmadhikari of Shree Kshetra Dharmasthala, will inaugurate the first ever International Tulu meet ‘Vishwa Tulu Sammelana 2018’ at Ice Rink, Al Nasr Leisure land, on November 23.
Dr D Veerendra Heggade will be the chief guest of the mega event presided by Dr B R Shetty, patron of Tuluvas in Dubai.
More than 4,000 Tuluvas are expected to witness the day-long programme which will be the first ever event internationally. In the past, Vishwa Tulu Sammelanas were held at various venues in India.
In a meeting, Sarvotham Shetty, chief organizer, Overseas Tuluvas, B K Ganesh Rai and Shodhan Prasad, it was decided to form a core committee to host the mega event. An official meeting was held on June 29 at Burj Khalifa Residence Tower, Multi-function Hall, presided by Sarvotham Shetty and attended by core committee members, Shodhan Prasad, B K Ganesh Rai, Dev Kumar Kambli, Alwyn Pinto, Ajmal Said, Satish Poojary, Yogesh Prabhu, Smitha Prasanna Bhat, Suvarna Satish, Jyothika Harsh Shetty and Shashi Raviraj Shetty. Other core committee members including Afroz Assadi, N E Muloor, Noel D’Almeida and Lavina Fernandes were unable to attend due to some unavoidable circumstances. Tuluva guests from Mangaluru, district spokesman of BJP, Jitendra Kottary, Sampath Shetty and Kishore, all from Lotus Properties & Developers were also present who confirmed their firm support for the event.
The entire event will be jointly presented by Gulf Tuluvas, Akhila Bharatha Tulu Okkoota, Karnataka Tulu Sahitya Academy and Overseas Tuluvas. Along with Dr D Veerendra Heggade, Bishop of Mangaluru Catholic community, religious head of Muslim community and other well-known preachers, community leaders, ministers, actors, dramatists, writers, poets, singers, stand-up comedians, folk dancers, Yakshagana artistes and many well-known performers and presenters from Tulu Nadu will be arriving to grace the occasion.
Tulu Janapada Nrithya competition will be held for Tulu groups within Gulf countries comprising of Oman Muscat, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and UAE and any number of entries are permitted provided the theme should be in pure Tulu language.
A memorable souvenir will be published in remembrance of this event and will be distributed to all Tuluvas.
Tuluvas pride will be the main theme and the presentations will include Tala Maddale, Yakshagana Natya Vaibhava, Tulu Rasamanjari, Tulu Sahitya Ghosti (Kode, Iini, Yelle), Daivaradhane, Bhootaradane, Tulu Maadhyama Ghosti, Tulu Hasya Sanje, Tulu Kavana Vachana, Tulu Chutuku Ghosti, Tulu Ranga Bhoomi & Chalana Chitra Ghosti and Anivasi (Overseas) Tuluvara Ghosti. All these presentations will be strictly humorous to keep the audience entertained throughout. Well-known scholars, writers, poets and artistes will be the main presenters.
Competition to select title for souvenir, title song
An open competition is hereby announced for Tuluvas to participate in submitting smart and attractive name with meaning for the memorable souvenir to be released during the programme. All entries can be forwarded to vishwatulusammelanadubai@gmail.com. The title which will be selected will not only be used for the souvenir, but the person who provided the same, will be honoured during the programme with a prize.
Entries are also invited from good lyricist/composers to submit a good title song/music which should not be more than 30 seconds. The participants can submit their entries to vishwatulusammelanadubai@gmail.com and the selected entry’s composer will be honoured during the programme. The said clipping will be broadcasted all over social media.
The organizers have requested all community heads, members and Tuluvas in the Gulf to come forward wholeheartedly and support the mega event. Contributions from all Tuluvas are expected to make this event a grand success. A separate request will be sent to various associations in the coming days and more information will be posted from time to time in the media.