Amritha Varshini V O L U M E
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New series of article by Smt Rama Devi Dear Readers
NEW !!!
We are delighted to inform you all about the launch of new series of articles on the works of Avvaiyar, the Tamizh Poet, whose works inspires many even today. The new series is being authored by Smt Ramadevi, whom we are fortunate to associate with. I recently happened to read her article on Avvaiyar which was published in The Hindu. I was touched by the article and made a request to write on the works of Avvaiyar for the benefit of Amritha Varshini readers, which she accepted immediately. We are glad to enclose the brief profile Smt Ramadevi for us to understand better about the author. Let us welcome Smt Ramadevi to Amritha Varshini so that values of Avvaiyar are instilled in our minds always. We will be glad to receive your valuable feedback. Those who wishes to subscribe our eMagazine can mail to us
[email protected] Pranams Anand Vasudevan Editor - Amritha Varshini Gurgaon - 15th March 2014
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Profile of Smt Ramadevi B. Ramadevi, 63, is a teacher of English. She is deeply interested in music and dance, and is a freelance reviewer for a reputed English daily. Her love for Tamil, Hindi and Sanskrit stems from her childhood; she grew up in a home where love for languages reigned supreme. The works of eminent poets and writers were a part of regular meal time conversations. She studied in Tamil medium till SSLC, and then made the transition to acquainting herself with the Queen’s tongue. After serving as a teacher for nearly three decades, she started a Centre for Language skills and helped hundreds of students in gaining confidence in the use of English and Hindi. She uses the errors of the students as symptoms to understand their difficulties. In fact, this was the theme of her M.Phil thesis too. She gives lectures in schools and colleges on various topics and conducts workshops for practising teachers. She has a huge following among her students, and her blog posts on grammar have been very well received.
New Series on the works of Avvaiyar by Smt Ramadevi
Tamil is a slice of her heart. It is the language of the land she grew up in. She strives to recreate the richness of this ancient language into English, so that more people can dip into the treasure-trove of knowledge and beauty it offers. Ramadevi is a constant learner. After her 40s, she fell headlong in love with Sanskrit, a language she grew up hearing. Every day, she discovers newer meanings and unravels newer layers. That seeking is what she strives to inculcate in her students and readers. Saint Tyagaraja, with his implicit devotion, has always ruled her heart, and in her 50s, she set about learning Telugu, to appreciate his kritis better. She can identify better with Tyagaraja now. Her mother tongue is Kannada, and, Purandara Dasa has a special place in her heart. She is fascinated by the lyrical beauty of the compositions of Dikshithar, Shyama Sastri, Oothukkadu Venkatakavi and Jayadeva. Her prowess in English, Hindi and Tamil sees her taking up regular translation work. Ramadevi’s current passion is to write value-based stories for children, based on our ancient scriptures and literature to enable them to revel in their culture, even as they accept and flourish in a contemporary world.
The Author can be reached at
[email protected]
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