Amrutha Someshwara was ‘Shakespeare of Tulu’: L.N. Mukundaraj

Amrutha Someshwara was ‘Shakespeare of Tulu’: L.N. Mukundaraj

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, Sep 26, 2027: Renowned writers play a vital role in the growth of a language, and Amrutha Someshwara made an immense contribution to the development of Tulu, said Karnataka Sahitya Academy president L.N. Mukundaraj.

“Just as Adikavi Pampa contributed to Kannada and Shakespeare to English, Amrutha Someshwara was like Shakespeare to Tulu,” he said while inaugurating the ‘Amrutha Manthana’ programme held in memory of the late writer at St Aloysius College here on Sunday.

Mukundaraj said Someshwara’s writings upheld humanity and compassion above all religions and had the potential to promote secular values in the coastal region.

Kannada Development Authority president Dr Purushottama Bilimale said Someshwara played a major role in promoting Tulu language, culture and traditions after Paniyadi. Through his teaching career, he introduced Tulu culture to younger generations, while his devotional songs reflected pure devotion without worldly demands, he said.

Karnataka Tulu Sahitya Academy president Taranath Gatti Kapikad said Someshwara could have achieved national recognition alongside Chandrashekhara Kambara and Girish Karnad had he written more plays in Kannada or English. However, his contribution to Tulu remained unparalleled, he said.

Scholar and former vice-chancellor Prof B.A. Vivek Rai, who presided over the programme, recalled Someshwara’s efforts to promote Yakshagana in Tulu at a time when there was opposition to the idea. His contribution to the six-volume Tulu dictionary was also significant, Rai said, adding that programmes such as ‘Amrutha Manthana’ should be held regularly to introduce his legacy to younger generations.

St Aloysius University Pro-Chancellor Dr Melwyn D’Cunha described Someshwara as a socially conscious thinker and advocate of human values who expressed his views frankly but gracefully.

Achintya Rai, runner-up in the junior category of Zee Kannada’s Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Little Champs 2026, was felicitated on the occasion.

Someshwara’s son, Dr Chetana Someshwara, recalled that his father never chased opportunities but gracefully declined those that came his way.

The programme, organised jointly by various literary and cultural organisations and Someshwara’s family, began with the unveiling of a plaque commemorating his song Enna Devaragudi.

Senior journalist and Bahuroopi Foundation member G.N. Mohan compered the event, while lecturer Rajeshwari Chetan welcomed the gathering.

The inaugural session was followed by seminars and discussions on Someshwara’s literary works and the cultural programme ‘Amruthagana’.