Experience the Tamil culture as part of Folklorama's 50th year of celebrations.

"There's no Tamil country."

Ranjan R. Sri Ranjan, media coordinator for the Tamil Pavilion as part of Folklorama this year, says that his people represent a culture more than a location, with no single place of origin - something that sets them apart.

The areas most often called home by those from the Tamil culture include a distinct portion of northeastern Sri Lanka and the southern part of India, which have a combined population of over 80 million. Many others left their home countries throughout history for better opportunities in places such as South Africa and North America.

But while the Tamil people may not come from any one Tamil place, the Tamil language is the oldest language still spoken today and a key part of what holds the culture together, according to Sri Ranjan.

"It's not only very old, but it's also very modern in the sense that I can use my iPhone to type in Tamil," Sri Ranjan explained. The language's ability to adapt and its rich background in literature show together the beautiful history behind its longevity.

In addition to his work as the media coordinator, Sri Ranjan is the individual tasked with creating the pavilion's cultural display each year.

A taste of the language will be available, personally curated, at the Tamil Pavilion's interactive display this year. There, you will be able to receive instruction on how to write your name in Tamil, among other carefully-chosen cultural activities available at the pavilion.

"Tamil people do not have a first-name concept, it's always one name given to you," Sri Ranjan explained. British arrival to areas inhabited by the Tamil people also brought the two-name system into the culture. "They always use the father's name as the first name and the initial - it's like your middle initial."

The beginning of movement by the Tamil around the world, however, led them to adopt two names as a means of identifying one another.

"Otherwise, if you are in the village ...  everybody knows everybody," smiled Sri Ranjan. "It's a large community."

Over 350,000 Tamils live today in Canada, particularly located in Toronto. About 250 currently reside in Winnipeg.

Sri Ranjan immigrated to the United States in 1983 at the age of 27 to pursue graduate studies in agriculture and engineering, and following the completion of his Ph.D decided to move to Canada.

"I found Canada as a friendly and very peaceful country," he shared. Despite having relatives in the Toronto area, Sri Ranjan eventually came to Winnipeg to be able to teach at the University of Manitoba in 1990.

"I've been here ever since," the professor reports, smiling.

Unfortunately, part of the reason Sri Ranjan never returned to his home in Sri Lanka was due to political struggles. The Sri Lankan Civil War did not end until 2009 after more than 25 years of conflict. Pogroms seized his parent's houses, and so the professor and his family found it safer to immigrate.

"Close to 70,000 people got massacred within a couple of weeks," he said," government asked them to go to a safe zone and then bombed them."

In the conflict, Sri Ranjan's family was able to leave but their loss of property also brought with it a loss of personal history and a home to their memories. "I would like to be able to go to my grandparents home."

Despite the later difficulties he encountered in his young adulthood, Sri Ranjan had a wonderful childhood in Sri Lanka. "It's a beautiful country," he says. Due to their close proximity to the equator, temperatures are warm and those in the country experience a perfectly split day with 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night.

The Tamil Cultural Society of Manitoba, which provides language classes and hosts culturally-themed events, among other things, has served to connect Sri Ranjan with his culture here in Canada.

"It's difficult to maintain the language as a spoken language when everybody is English," the professor shared, a tragedy for a culture based so much on a shared means of communication. Thankfully, he and his wife have been able to foster a strong understanding of Tamil in their son, who continues to speak the language with them at home.

A visit to the Tamil Pavilion during Folklorama this year will result in excellent food, divine dance, and interactive displays sure to inform and excite all those who step through the door. 

Visit the Tamil Pavilion in your Folklorama travels this year from Sunday, August 11 to Saturday, August 17, 2019, at the Burton Cummings Community Centre (960 Arlington Street, located on Arlington at McDermot).