A Tribute

When the developed countries around the world didn't think much about going to the next stage of improving their democratic election process, India successfully used (still using!) Electronic Voting machines. And who was the man behind it ?

Today India's regional languages are up in an identity crisis with the youngsters attracted towards English. Those who learn the regional language are happy blaming those who don't learn it and create literature understandable only for a small circle. So, when a 70 year old vernacular language writer died, you would hardly expect the youngsters to even notice it, let alone getting shocked. But that's what happened when this man passed away. So what did he do?

When the free software enthusiasts were busy appreciating the 'freedom' provided by the ideology, there was a group which took it to people. Among them he stood tall in guiding people in doing the right thing to try and bring the mass to use GNU/Linux.

He wrote a explanatory text for a 2000 year old literature. He wrote fictions of what will happen after 100 years. He wrote science in simple words in his mother tongue which anyone would appreciate. He wrote screen plays to famous movies, including 2007's blockbuster. He wrote a full glossary of technical terms in his mother tongue.

Unlike the formal obituary speeches and articles that are written to some 'erstwhile' prolific person, his absence truly left a void: his scientific question-answer in a weekly stopped with a lot of questions unanswered; his blog like rambling in a weekly which had a huge following suddenly ceased to see his thoughts; a crew involved in a multicrore project where he was a chief mastermind felt to have lost a hand.

It is hard to forget this legend, engineer, author and screenplay writer, Sujatha Rangarajan who passed away on February 27, 2008 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sujatha_Rangarajan). Hundreds of people have written passionate articles about him and the internet is full of data about his life and works. But if the politicians, the political linguists (no pun intended) are true to their wish to keep their language in the midst of people, should pray for someone life Sujatha to emerge out of their talent pool. They should attract people to their mother tongue instead of barring them from going towards a foreign language by forcible evictions. They should create interest in people in their language by bringing out wonderful accessible literature, instead of gleaming to have seen a word from the language on Greek wall (no pun intended).

Growth of a language doesn't depend on talking about how old the language was or how great the literature of the language was. Then it becomes an interest only to historians and literary enthusiasts. Language grows (or at least avoid vanishing) only if it is relevant in the current context. Sujatha did precisely that, by bringing in science, fiction, and even the brilliant literature of the past to the common man. In the ancient days lack of printing and storage means hampered the scholars from writing prose and restricted them to write only in concise poems. It surely is an art, an adorable art. And that's where it stops. Art is always for the gifted or at least those who spend a life time with it.

It may never happen that we get someone who can do all that Sujatha could do, but I wish he would be an inspiration to the next generation enthusiasts to take up one of the many face masks that he wore and excel in the same. If that can happen in each of the regional language, then we would have no trouble in preserving our languages.

There are some vivid memories that I have of his works:
I still can remember "En Iniya Iyanthira" (My dear Robot), the science fiction which came as a weekly serial in Doordharshan (Tamil) in the early 90s. I can remember to have seen with curiosity and fear, his scientific thriller novel "Kolayuthir Kalam" (The murder season) which also came as a weekly serial in DD. I still remember how I waited for more than a month to buy his "Yen, Etharku, Eppadi" (Why, What and how: A collection of Science Q&A) from a second hand bookshop for Rs.30/-. It would an understatement to say that the book provoked many a scientific curiosities in me and also damped out the unnecessary excitements towards some fields.

Some of his unforgettable works, for me (I have read minuscule of his works):
Novels:
Kolaiyudhir Kalam
En Iniya Iyandira and Meendum Geeno (Geeno Again)

Short Stories and others:
Srirangathu Devadhaigal
El-dorado, Arisi
Vignana Sirugadhaigal (Scientific Short Stories)

Science:
Yen, Etharku, Eppadi (Why?, What?, How?)

Screenplays
Mudhalvan (Nayak)
Kannathil Muthamittal
& many more

Random Writing:
Katrathum Petrathum