logo
Tamil script weaves a new identity in fashion

Tamil script weaves a new identity in fashion

Time of India01-06-2025
1
2
3
4
5
In Tamil Nadu, language has always been a hot topic. Now, it's haute as well.
Case in point: Chennai-based designer Vivek Karunakaran's latest collection Idam (Tamil for 'place'), which debuted in Feb at the FDCI India Men's Week in Jaipur, featuring the Tamil script as individual letters and complete Thirukkural couplets.
Karunakaran says the collection began as a tribute to the city, but from there, the thread of the narrative evolved into a celebration of identity, "an unapologetic expression of who we are and where we come from". He adds that the collection is being expanded to include women's wear. "It's declaration of pride."
In one look, Karunakaran has a verse of the Kural block-printed on a jacket paired with Korean pants. "We've gone beyond just printing the alphabet to creating meaningful designs," says Karunakaran, whose clothes are priced between Rs 6,000 and Rs 60,000.
Designers from outside Tamil Nadu too are scripting the language into their couture. In Mumbai, actor Sonam Kapoor was recently spotted in a cream saree designed by Masaba, which had the Tamil letters, 'th', 'na' and more in black and gold.
"The Tamil script has a unique visual ap peal," says Karthiknathan S, a graphic designer who specialises in Tamil lettering. "With almost 216 distinct characters, there is a lot of visual diversity."
He adds that when Tamil was adapted into a font, ascenders and descenders were adjusted for visual consistency. "As a result, words and sentences form patterns with varying heights and depths. Depending on the preceding or following letter, ascenders or descenders are altered, creating intriguing patterns.
It pushes the possibilities of what can be done with the Tamil letter".
This, perhaps, explains why Tamil-script clothes have been well received, even by those unfamiliar with the language, says Dubai-based designer Vino Supraja, who has incorporated it into her collection 'Purisai', named after the Purisai Nadaga Pairchi Palli, a therukoothu school founded by Kannapa Sambandhan Ayya, who was awarded the Padma Shri this year.
She adds that the appeal is so universal that most of her clients for the collection are Emiratis and Singaporeans, not Tamilians.
"After our London Fashion Week show, the script became a conversation starter. It gave us a chance to discuss Tamil language, therukoothu, and Purisai's cultural richness. The Tamil script is the visual anchor," says Supraja, who grew up in Vandavasi, 10km from Purisai, where her father served as a doctor.
Supraja also wore a saree featuring the school's name in her handwriting when she received the Glob al Sustainable Trailblazer Award recently at the House of Commons.
Mayank Bhutra, a designer from Rajasthan raised in Erode (which is why he has named his brand Erode), says using the Tamil script in his clothes is about celebrating the place where he grew up. "We're in the process of developing our own typeface for the clothes, blending Tamil and English in a contemporary design," says Bhutra, who adds that as a child, he saw Jamakalam weavers at work and was fascinated.
When he returned to the craft as an adult, he realised that despite years of tradition and a GI tag, there were no new designs or patterns. And that, he adds, was when he decided to help script Jamakalam a "contemporary identity".
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

A life on the line: South Indian stunt artists battle danger without a safety net
A life on the line: South Indian stunt artists battle danger without a safety net

New Indian Express

time2 hours ago

  • New Indian Express

A life on the line: South Indian stunt artists battle danger without a safety net

He was the original action hero, a man who dared to do what no one else would. On November 16, 1980, Malayalam superstar Jayan strapped himself to a dream—and a helicopter. While shooting the climax of Kolilakkam in Sholavaram near Chennai, he leapt from a moving motorcycle onto a hovering Bell 47. The scene was already in the can, but Jayan, ever the perfectionist, wanted a retake. What followed was horror: the helicopter spun out of control and crashed. Jayan was killed instantly. He was 41. More than four decades later, the story repeats itself—this time in Nagapattinam, Tamil Nadu. On July 13, 2025, S. Mohanraj, known in the industry as SM Raju, one of Tamil cinema's seasoned stunt masters, died performing a high-speed car stunt for director Pa Ranjith's upcoming film Vettuvam. The vehicle overturned during filming. He was rushed to the hospital but could not be saved. These aren't isolated tragedies. Last year, a car chase gone wrong during the filming of Bromance left actors Arjun Ashokan and Sangeet Prathap injured, prompting a Motor Vehicles Department case for overspeeding. In 2016, two stuntmen drowned during the shoot of Masti Gudi, a Kannada film. The two—Uday Raghav and Anil Kumar—jumped from a helicopter into a reservoir without life jackets. They drowned. The film's lead actor, who wore a life jacket, survived.

Maareesan Movie Review: A pleasant ride derailed by a string of unpleasant surprises
Maareesan Movie Review: A pleasant ride derailed by a string of unpleasant surprises

New Indian Express

time4 hours ago

  • New Indian Express

Maareesan Movie Review: A pleasant ride derailed by a string of unpleasant surprises

This is not the first time we have seen Vadivelu in a full-fledged non-comedic role, and certainly not the last time anybody is going to talk about the actor's seismic impact on Tamil pop culture. What is still surprising is how celebrated and yet unexplored his acting range is. Both in Maamannan and Maareesan, there are instances where Vadivelu breaks down after a moment of abject powerlessness, with similar emotions but wildly different reasons behind them. And yet, you don't see traces of his earlier characters. Sometimes, there is no Maamannan, Velayudham, or even Vadivelu, but just a man conveying a feeling authentic enough that it even crosses the context of a functional scene to move you. From world view to general countenance, there is a stark difference in characterisation between Dhayalan and Velayudham, and it is wonderfully accentuated by Fahadh's nonchalance. He could have played the well-established 'charming scammer' trope for this role and gotten away with it, but he never does. The actor achieves more by doing less and walks away with your respect.

CBFC panel verbally refused to certify KIFF film: Director
CBFC panel verbally refused to certify KIFF film: Director

Time of India

time5 hours ago

  • Time of India

CBFC panel verbally refused to certify KIFF film: Director

1 2 Kolkata: The Dallas-based director of 'Kalponik' told TOI that the revising committee of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) that watched his Bengali film in Mumbai last Friday (July 18) verbally refused to recommend it for certification. Director Arka Mukhopadhyay said the 15-member committee fears that releasing his film will disrupt communal harmony since it feels that, although the movie is a work of fiction, the storyline hints at a probable politician-media nexus when controversies erupt over unearthing Hindu idols on the premises of mosques. CBFC's regional officer in Kolkata, Sushrut Sharma, is waiting for the written communication on this from the CBFC Mumbai office. "An examining committee watched the film in Kolkata. The revising committee meeting was held in Mumbai last Friday," said Sharma. "The protocol now is that the CBFC Mumbai office will send the CBFC Kolkata office written documentation on the observations. We will then share it with the director," he added. Mukhopadhyay's Bengali film, screened in the competitive segment of the Bengali Panorama of the 30th Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF) last year, is based on what happens when relics of an ancient temple are unearthed underneath a mosque before an upcoming election. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Up to 70% off | Libas Purple Days Sale Libas Undo It stars Rajatava Dutta, Shahidur Rehman, and Satakshi Nandy. "At Friday's meeting, I was asked if my film is pointing to the Babri Masjid and Ram Temple controversy. I was quizzed about whether or not my storyline hints at a probable politician-media nexus when controversies erupt over unearthing Hindu idols on the premises of mosques. But I told the committee that mine is a fictional story and is a work of art. The title of the film itself is 'Kalponik', which means imaginary," the engineer-turned-director told TOI. You Can Also Check: Kolkata AQI | Weather in Kolkata | Bank Holidays in Kolkata | Public Holidays in Kolkata According to him, the committee was not convinced. "It felt that my story, told from a foreign lens, may disrupt communal harmony. I was even told that my film shows one particular community in a bad light. I have asked CBFC to give me everything in writing. When I wanted to know if there is anything that could be done to bring the film to the audiences, the answer was 'not the way it is told now'. The committee agreed to consider if I changed the approach or my script. But doing so will turn it into another film. It will then become 'Kalponik 2'," Mukhopadhyay said.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store