One of the biggest hurdles to accessing classic Kannada texts and literature is the lack of information on credible sources where the literature is available in a consolidated, indexed format. That is all set to change.
Following the success of an experiment to create an online indexed database of the scattered vachana literature — vachana.sanchaya.net , numerous other classical texts are almost ready to go online. Sanchaya, a collective of techies and litterateurs working on Kannada classical texts, is now in the final stages of completing work on a database of a multitude of Kannada classical texts.
Dasa Sahitya , a collection of around 16,000 keertanas by around 190 keertanakaras of the Vaishnavite Bhakti movement, including the likes of Purandaradasa and Kanakadasa, has been now compiled and indexed.
Not just the Dasa Sahitya , the earliest known Kannada work, Kavirajamarga (850 CE), by Rashtrakuta king Nrupatunga, Kumaravyasa Bharata — a retelling of the Mahabharata by 15th century Kannada poet Kumaravyasa, Sarvagna vachanas, and Mankutimmana Kagga by D.V. Gundappa are all set to go online.
Om Shivaprakash H.L., one of the techies working on the project, said all the texts had been prepared in Unicode and meticulously indexed, which would allow users and researchers to search for keywords and prepare reports.
The online versions of these databases are presently on trial in their alpha versions, open to a select few researchers and experts to correct any mistakes and typos. “That is important. When we did the Vachana Sanchaya, we found that the government-edited Vachana Samputa had many mistakes, repetitions and even incorrect ascribing of the vachana and the poet,” Mr. Shivaprakash said.
He added that the correction and editing was a continuous process and they had created a back-end tool to capture feedback which will be discussed and deliberated upon by the experts, after which a stand will be taken.
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All set to go online
Dasasahitya Sanchaya – A collection of 16,000 keertanas by around 190 keertanakaras of the Vaishnavite Bhakti movement
Kavirajamarga – Earliest available Kannada literature on poetics and grammar written by Rashtrakuta king Nrupatunga. The work makes references to earlier forms of writing in various Kannada dialects, lost to time now.
Sarvagna Vachana Sanchaya – A collection of a total of 779 Sarvagna vachanas, of three lines each (tripadi) written by 16th century Kannada philosopher and pragmatist Sarvagna.
Kumaravyasa Bharata – known as the Karnata Bharata Kathamanjari , a 15th century work and an adaptation of 10 parvas of the Mahabharata . It is in Bhamini Shatpadi, poems of six lines each.
Kagga Sanchaya – Mankutimmana Kagga , written by D.V. Gundappa in 1943, has 945 poems of four lines each.
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Now Kagga on an app: plans to mount other classics on the app
“We were made to read a Kagga every day in the morning assembly during our school days. Then I lost the text as I became busy with higher education and professional life. Now I read a Kagga every day on my mobile phones. Apart from making the text accessible again, it makes me nostalgic too,” says Arvind Patil, a surgeon in the city.
Yes. That veritable Kannada Gita D.V. Gundappa’s 1943 philosophical work Mankutimmana Kagga is available on an Android app, which even gives you a simple commentary on the poem, an English translation and transliteration for those who cannot read Kannada. The commentary for the Kagga is by Ravi Tirumalai, from his book Kagga Rasadhaare.
You can download the beta version of the app Mankutimmana Kagga on your Google Play Store for free. The app comes with a loaded data file of the Kagga and works completely offline. The text on the app is in Unicode which helps the user search, bookmark and easily navigate through the 945 poems.
K.S. Supreeth, an Android developer working with a start-up in the city, said the Kagga app he developed had seen more than 5,000 downloads and the response had been very inspiring.
He now plans to include a new social media feature on the app, which will help various users reading the Kagga to connect with each other and discuss the same. However, this will make the app go online and use up data.
The Kagga app may just be a starter, which is expected to open the floodgates and help bring a multitude of Kannada classical texts on mobile phones. Mr. Supreeth is planning to expand on his project and mount other Kannada classic texts on his app.
“I am in talks with people behind vachana.sanchaya.net to access content of vachanas and Sarvagna vachanas. The Android app that I have developed has an easy interface and works as a platform on which any classic poetry can be mounted just by changing the data file, which opens up opportunity for many other projects,” he said.
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‘Youth taking to Kannada classics with renewed vigour’
“The new generation of urbane Kannada readers have enthusiastically taken to Kannada classics, engaging with them and making the texts their own,” says renowned Kannada poet H.S. Venkatesh Murthy.
Mr. Murthy, who started a small group of professionals interested in Kannada classical texts ‘Abhyasa,’ taught Kumaravyasa Bharata to the group for over three years during the weekends. He has published his classes of the Bharata as three books which have been a runaway success too.
Mr. Murthy welcomes the move to make Kannada classical texts available on the Internet and mobile phones. “This will help remove many accessibility hurdles and provide the text with a simple commentary to willing readers in the format that they are comfortable in. We have to explore all modern modes of communication to reach our young readers,” he said.
He added that the mobile applications showed that the most modern platforms can be creatively used to express the ancient too. But care must be taken not to spoil the spirit of the text, he cautions.
