Thirukkural on Mobile Phone

P.R. Harikumar

Dept. of Malayalam,
Sree Sankara College, Kalady





Since the last three years I was in search of a way by which we can read books and files written in Indian languages in mobile phones. At last I got software called Readmaniac from the net by which I could read English files in my mobile. After that I added some Malayalam fonts into that software and converted some Malayalam files into Jar format, an application file for Java enabled mobile phones. Through this way last month I downloaded all the kandas of Adhyatma Ramayana, a classic in Malayalam Literature into my mobile. Ramayana, a 600 pages book took only 340 KB space in mobile.

As the entry of Malayalam language in cell phone has become more easier I tried about other Indian languages also. After searching a lot I could find out the possibility of Tamil language. So I tried to convert Tamil classical work Thirukkural into a mobile edition. Since I have only a little knowledge about Tamil language with the help of another person I converted Thirukkural into a text file. After adding Tamil font in Readmaniac, I converted text file into Jar file-an application for Java enabled mobile phones. An mp 3 song needs at least 4 MB space for its storage in mobile. But for this edition of Thirukkural only 110 KB of memory is enough.

Thirukkural was written by Thiruvalluvar in 5th centuary AD, in the last phase of Sangom age. Kural is the shotrest metre in Tamil ie. a couplet.Thirukkural is divided into three parts-Arathupal (Notes on Dharma),Porutpal (Notes on Wealth and country) and Kaamaththupal (Notes on Love). It consisits of 133 chapters and each chapter has its own title like Kadavul Vaazhththu, Kallamai and Arivutamai. Every chapter has 10 Kurals each.In total 2660 lines are in the Thirukkural.It was influenced by Sanskrit literature and Aryan civilization. Thirukkural has some other names like Dravidavedam,Uththaravedam, Poyyamozhi, Muppanool and Daivanool.

Now from my small mobile screen you can browse and read the full version of this Tamil epic. We can do the same even in our journey anywhere. In a short span of time I will make available this edition in your mobile phone through any mobile service provider or via Internet.

Now it is possible to convert any text or book in Tamil in any size into a mobile edition.In future it is possible to see a man sitting in a railway compartment reading easily a new novel or a poetical work in Tamil in his mobile phone.I think this is the first time a literary text or a text file in Tamil is converted for a mobile edition. Even in the Internet we cannot see a Jar file in Tamil and Malayalam. I think my attempt will give more chance to Tamilians to live in a reading atmosphere even then they are on the move.

Basically my aim is to convert the mobile phone into a cultural tool with our own traditional content from its ordinary position of a mere calling machine. In near future I will also try to make some mobile editions of literary works written in Kannada and Telugu. I expect the wholehearted co-operation from all the well -wishers of regional languages in India.

Basically I am a writer in Malayalam with three books in credit- two collections of stories and one collection of literary essays. In 1988 I got Thunchan Smarak Samman from Kerala Sahithya Acedemi.

Download Mobile Thirukkural

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