Representing Tamil culture with a matchbox
So there I was perusing my daily academic when i chanced upon this rather charming article from the Excalibur, York University (the Canadian one,not the UK one). Apparently the students of the esteemed is using the York University Tamil Students’ Association (YUTSA) is using the LTTE , oh I’m sorry the Tamil Eelam (take a right at Neverland, pass Atlantis, go about 20 kilometers and you’re there) flag to use to promote their Tamil culture.
Apparently the flag being used is not affiliated with the LTTE because the words LTTE are not included. Thus it is a representative of ‘Eelam,’ not the LTTE. Of course this does ignore one small fact. That it was Prabhakaran that was the Betsy Ross of the ‘Eelam’ flag. In fact he designed it based on a matchbox (Inside an Elusive Mind. M.R. Narayan Swamy. Sri Lanka: Vijitha Yapa Publications, 2006.). This revelation would of course not come as much of a surprise to those of us who have lit a furtive cigarette in our youth from saivar kade matchboxes. I always knew there was something familiar about that flag but never placed it until I read the book.
So this is what I really find amusing. After a couple of millennia of cultural achievements ranging from the Brihadeshvara Temple to the Chola bronzes (and some might even say the invention of the crepe) the esteemed students of the York University (the Canadian one not the UK one) Tamil Student’s Association led by Sahabthan Jesuthasan have chosen to represent that with a matchbox inspired flag designed by a psychopath.
You must make your people proud.
hee hee good one.
Comment by Jack Point — February 13, 2008 @ 6:47 am
Lol! Do you think perhaps a 100 years down the line Tamil people would be symbolised by anything other than the LTTE associated stuff?
Comment by Darwin — February 13, 2008 @ 7:52 am
Nice One
Comment by Dili — February 13, 2008 @ 9:10 am
This is nothing surprising to me since I live in Toronto and this is like my daily sight! I have to agree with what you say but in Toronto Tamils like me are absolute minority compared to the rest out there and arguing with them is a waste. There was another incident where one of the Tamil Organizations was pressuring the Karnatic musicians in Toronto to start using or better said start “creating” new Tamil names for the notes used in the music which has been represented by Sanskrit for the past few centuries and also include more Eelam songs in the curriculum. Thankfully the Karnatic music teachers association rejected it but what I wanted to point out was the current mentality of people living here.
Comment by Parthi — February 13, 2008 @ 11:22 am
Its also sad to see when the rest of the world is moving forward with a multicultural scenario, these kinda events make me think whether we are going back in time and isolating us form the rest of the world or rest of the Tamils in the world
Comment by Parthi — February 13, 2008 @ 11:28 am
Happy Valentines day! Just thought I would distract you from the small stuff…match boxes and what not. Have a look at this and tell us what you think: http://media.theage.com.au/?rid=35435. Every one over here is feeling warm and fuzzy about things.
Comment by L — February 14, 2008 @ 12:06 am
I honestly think our Foreign Ministry need to work harder in presenting our case. Recently I came across a ethnicity form from a very recognised organisation in the UK, it asked you whether you were;
Sri Lankan Sinhalese
Sri Lankan Tamil
Sri Lanka Other
WTF?
Comment by dhammika d — February 14, 2008 @ 12:36 pm
Actually, the Tamil names for the Carnatic notes aren’t new - you’ll find them in the Silappadhikaram, so they’re at least 1500 years old. But yes, the Sanskrit names have served us well for several centuries, and there’s not much point changing them. It’s interesting to see the LTTE increasingly come under the influence of the sort of policies traditionally associated with the Dravidian movement of Tamil Nadu. I wonder what lies behind it.
Comment by Ponderous Pachyderm — February 18, 2008 @ 3:57 pm
It seems the executives at TSA are trying to further their own political opinions. They forgot this is a CULTURAL organization not a POLITICAL organization. Sahab Jesuthasan’s post in the YUTSA facebook group on March 7th 2008 reads “by the way the flag that represents the Tamils from Ceylon’s is the Tamil Eelam flag…” Is anyone else curious as to who gave him the power to speak on behalf of all Tamils from Sri Lanka? That in addition to a comment from the Vice-President of Finance for YUTSA a “Vithu R.” on March 8th 2008 that reads “drop it and move on” clearly shows how unprofessional these 2 executives are. What if the president of York University (Mr. Mamdouh Shoukri) said that when they tried to use the “eelam” flag? Would they have dropped it? Would they have just moved on? Probably not; but for some strange reason which I cant seem to understand, the Vice-President of Finance for the organization feels those concerned should do that.
Comment by V. Sriskanda — March 24, 2008 @ 12:24 am