In today's news we are featuring an excerpt of yesterday's General Meeting on Auroville Water Maintenance Service. On Saturday, 13th of April at 7.00pm at the Sri Aurobindo Auditorium, Bharat Nivas, Pavilion of indian Culture in International Zone we are cordially invited for the cultural program to celebrate Tamil New Year. LIVE MUSIC & DANCE at Kalabhumi also on Saturday from 8pm onward with Anna Taj, Rolf, Edo, Inga, Piter, Pierre, Robert and Arthur. Next Earth Day meeting- Saturday 4:30 PM at Visitor Centre at Marc's Cafe. Read more

All was invited to participate in the Literary Festival of Kamba Ramayana on 31st March 2013 Sunday at Bharat Nivas, Auroville. A whole day full of lectures, discussions, music, dance and theater lead by great scholars and reputed personalities to address our students, staff and public from Auroville region. This event was organized by the Tamil Heritage Centre to celebrate the Kamba Literary Festival. Kamba lived almost 1000 years ago during the Chola dynasty from the centre part of Tamil Nadu and wrote Ramayana in Tamil. Read more

Life Education Center (LEC), located in Kottakarai, it's a personal growth center for young Tamil women from the villages around. Created in 1991, it gives them the opportunity to learn English and many other skills like tailoring and be aware of their body and to feel worthy as a women. Last Saturday was the open day at LEC. Many girls were there, dressing their most beautiful sari, surrounded by their teachers. During this event, Zerina, Harini, Bhuvana Sundari, Krupa, Devi, Susmita and the mime Drupad explained their own experiences at LEC. Read more

Bharat Nivas, the Pavilion of India, holded the homage to Thyagaraja. It started two years back with the beginning of Telugu Samskriti Kendramu. This year the homage started in the morning with a procession with chantings from the gate of Unity Pavilion. At SAWCHU started the traditional musical homage of Thyagaraja kritis by the Auroville students, teachers and professional musicians. Songs of other composers where also offered in the spirit of devotion of the event. Shri N. Bala Baskar, Secretary, Auroville Foundation was the chief guest. Read more

Life Education Center (LEC) is an Auroville outreach school, providing vocational training and counseling to empower semi-educated girls from the nearby villages since 1991. In this interview, the students and some LEC teachers share personal reflections and experiences by each focusing on one of the qualities in the Mother's symbol. Paralleled in a collective visual art piece, there is also a sample of the daily chanting at LEC at the end of the session. The following are the individual names and the qualities/aspects which they explored: Read more

This program was recorded by Daniel exactly one year afte the Tsunami struck the Auroville's beach communities. Sri Ma, Repos, Quiet and other settlements were devastated by the killer wave but luckily no residents of Auroville or guests were injured. In the nearby villages the fate was very different: many villagers lost their life and almost all the villages along the cost lost boats and fishing nets. In this interviews you'll hear the voices of Aurovilians from Israel, US, Argentina, France, UK, The Netherland and India. Read more

Last Wednesday the 12-12-12 at Bharat Nivas Auditorium Auroville, Bharata Natyam School (Rasika) presented the Bharata Natyam Preformance (South Indian classical dance with musicians). Seraphina presented "The Rainbow Dancer", accompanied by Srimati Shanty Rayapoulle on Nattuvangam, Sri Isai Ma Mani A.Susairaj on Vocal, Sri Kalai Gnana Mani Thirumundi S. Arun on Mrdangam, and Sri Shri Ratna T. Sreenivasan on Violin. They explored the divine colours and their existence to part on the rainbow path towards the Lord's heart ! Read more

Saturday at 4.30 pm at SAWCHU in International Zone Mirra Women's Group is organizing a workshop about "The Mother by Sri Aurobindo" & The Sunlit path, The workshop led by Mr. Rajagopalan, and the talk will be in Tamil. Tamil Heritage Centre Team is inviting the community to celebrate Dasara festival at Ilaignarkal Education Centre every day until 24th. INVITATION to Act - Collective Priorities & Values meeting on Tuesday 23rd at 4.30pm at Unity Pavilion in International Zone. Outreach Media informs the community on Imaging Database project. Read more

Today's news features an excerpt of the interview with Jan about his hunger strike to stand up to the bullying in Auroville. He began the hunger strike in direct response to the issue that happened at Svaram last week. In other news, there is currently a cultural show at the Tamil Heritage Center each evening from 4 to 6:30pm. See photos for illustrations of the issue, and to listen to the full interview with Jan, click this link: www.aurovilleradio.org/city-life/governance/3000-hunger-strike-against-bullying

Wednesday meeting of the leaders(panchayat) of villages in the Auroville neighborhood tried to raise awareness of local population on what Auroville stands for - from the beginning to today. Recording is in Tamil, and you can find Tamil text here. Read more

The Sufi singers Abdul Ghani, Ajah Maideen and Saburmaideen Babha Sabeer (Vocals and Rabahna percussion in the Qawwali style) from the Nagore Dargah usually perform at religious and social ceremonies at their sufi shrine in coastal Tamil Nadu. They recorded the song Ya Allah for Laya project movies and the album Nagore sessions for EarthSync. - www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXfPFxfy7ZM - www.layaproject.com - - www.earthsync.com/store-in.asp?catalogid=23 - - www.myspace.com/nagoresessions - Read more

In the sports ground of Edayanchavadi village Bindhu Malini and Vedanth Bharadwaj were performing live, with Folk-Blues acoustic set, the Kabir's poetry. They sang all the songs in Tamil language: Mira's song, To remember God , Mira's Bajan's song, Maya a Fraud, Sattle Sound of Universe. Bindhu's husband Vasu Vikshi also jumped on stage to play and sing with humor about Kabir in the contemporary contest and the Kaveri River's song. - www.vedanth.in - www.kabirproject.org - www.aurovilleperformingarts.com - Read more

Last Saturday in SAWCHU in Bharat Nivas, the international children's theatre workshop on Tagore literature took place. Mainly given in Tamil, its purpose was to let the children from the villages around Auroville share knowledge, work together and feel as one. And not just the children, but the teachers and some experts in theatre and education as well. The day, facilitated by Dr. Velu Saravanan, consisted of reciting poems and songs, theatre classes and as finale, a small play performed by the children. Read more

Pongal is one of the longest festivals of Tamils. It is celebrated from the14th to the 17th of January and it honors a new harvest season. It is considered as a good omen and it is an occasion to rejoice with friends, family and neighbors. In Hindu Culture, the Tamil Month of Thai brings good fortune to everyone, or as the Tamils say: "Thai piranthaal Vazhi Pirakkum" which means "the beginning of Thai provides ways for new opportunities". I guess we all need new, enriching and fertile opportunities, so happy Pongal to each of you. Read more

Ranjani and Gayatri perform their well appreciated carnatic melodies at the Adishakti Theater for the 2011 Soorya Festival of Pondicherry. - Ranjani and Gayatri are among the few carnatic musicians who have achieved a high level of success in both vocal and violin music. After more than a decade as successful violinists, the sisters' foray into vocal music has brought them instant recognition and wide acclaim. The sisters started giving vocal concerts in 1997, and within three years, won high praise from discerning critics and music lovers all over the globe. - blogs.wesleyan.edu

Priyadarshini Govind enchants the audience with her bharathnatyam performance at the Adishakti theater for the 2011 Soorya Festival event.  A graduate in commerce from the University of Madras, Chennai, Priyadarsini holds a diploma in Mass Communication, but Bharatanatyam has been her first love ever since she was six.Tall and slim, this Chennai based dancer is a delight to watch, the strong lines of her dance brought alive by a quality of abhinaya, nothing short of being in a class of its own.Intense and naturally talented, her special interest remains abhinaya: 'I think it's beautiful and I was trained in a particular style that gives a lot of emphasis on it'. artindia.net Read more

We walked along together for a while. We went to some places through Tamil Nadu meeting Indian people and culture. We asked them to sing a little song just like that. Discover India through their voices: at a local market, then harvesting in a rice field, or at Pour Tous Auroville supermarket, inside a church for Easter and finally walking among mountains in Kodaikanal.

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In this short interview Raja Ram gives us an insight of his life here in Auroville. He tells us how at a young age he got interested in Auroville because he learned a lot about the Mother and Sri Aurobindo in 'Isaiambalam' school which he attended. His aim is to help people and take Auroville to the next level. He spent two and and half years helping to develop the Distribution Center (a.k.a New Pour Tous) and is now involved with the Village Action. Interesting interview for those who understand..

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Un bus parte nel mezzo del pomeriggio per andar al Depaam festival a Thiruvannamalai. Ma cos'e' il Deepam festival? Vivi ascoltando le mie esperienze e sensazioni  questa via crucis tutta all'indiana. Una lunga marcia intervallata tra un buon chai e un succo Ital bevuti nel ciglio di questo fiume di gente che scorre senza freno rincorrendo la buona sorte.

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On Saturday the 14 November at the Gallery Square Circle in Kala Kendra ,an exhibition of Tamil artist Anbazhagan was inaugurated. The event started with a short performance by the Mohanam Sound crew. Thoorigai is the title of the artist's opus which is symbolically focused on his own world and life. Thoorigai translates roughly In English as 'Journey Toward Colorful Soil'. Anbazhagan's work is mostly oil on canvas; the rich textures of India can be clearly seen  from the soil to the tools and ornaments of daily life, from people in their normal activities, to vast symbolism. The interview with Anbazhagan is in Tamil.

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On on 15th August local villages around Auroville joyfully celebrated Indian independence day, an anniversary which fell on Sri Arobindo's 137th birth anniversary. One of the neighboring villages located very close to Auroville's greenbelt, called Kottakarai, participated enthusiastically in this unique celebration. Accordingly, women's groups from the village in conjunction with school students organized sports and other activities to encourage people from the village to get involved. Sudhakar interviewed some Tamil participants who were involved in these events, and AurovilleRadio has happily uploaded this program for everyone to hear.

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Last Saturday in the small village Rayapettai in the Auroville bioregion people gathered for a special event – introduction of Village Mapping Project with Google Earth. Amazing, and maybe hard to imagine but Rayapettai is on the map of the world on net! The aim of the project which started in spring was to contribute to the cultural and social revitalization of the region, and improve rural development. The project was introduced to the villagers with huge map made by Village Mapping Project team, and a children's play, which told us about Google Earth on its own way. Now Rayapettai exists on the map of the whole world! Would any of other villages follow that great example? Read more

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Last full moon on Saturday night was more in the spirit of cultural events than regular parties, although also the latest weren't missed. Bharat Nivas was witnessing the annual Mirra Women's Group performance. Mirra Womens Group are not only gathering women for different helping needs and supports, but also are very much active on the field of artistic expressions. From musical recitals, singing we slowly came to the most explosive part of that night – to some south Indian folk dances. Audience was supportive all the way with it constant hum in the background, but when girls started to dance, we heard a real excitement amongst the crowd. Don't dare to doubt that some of them joined garba dance afterward in nearby Sawchu.

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Private Land inside Auroville is a burning issue. While plans for the future city are being made, private land owners are pursuing their own plans. The tree cutting in the land near Certitude is a visible reminder of this gap. The land was flattened and is being offered for sale. AurovilleRadio tries to shed some light on what is happening there. Interviews with land owners and Jesse from the Auroville Council give two different perspectives on the subject.

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Without doubt Ganesh is one of the most popular deities in India, and all over the world. Either for his kindness and qualities of a god who's beneficiary in many cases or because of his interesting and cuddly figure of full belly being with elephant head and four arms... however, Lord Shree Ganesh is a god of knowledge and the remover of obstacles. He is worshiped or at least remembered in the beginning of any auspicious performance for blessings and auspiciousness. He has four hands, elephant's head and a big belly. His vehicle is a tiny mouse. A unique combination of his elephant like head and a quick moving tiny mouse vehicle represents tremendous wisdom, intelligence and presence of mind.

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Mohanam Marutham panpattu maiyathin Mudalam Aandu Niraivu vizha 13. 8. 2009 Andru Alankuppam Villiattu thidalil enithey Nadaipettrathu. Kadantha Oru varudankalaka Mohanam Marutham Siruvarkal karttu vantha (Kollattam, thappatam, Silambattam, Nattupura Nadanam, Nadakam, bharathanatiyam, padal) Kalaikalai vizha Medaiyil velipadulthinargal Ivvizhavirkku pettrorkal Anaivarum Kalanthu kondu, thankal Siruvarkalin thiramaiyinai paratinarkal. Melum Avarkalin Kalachara pariMattrathai parthavudan Kirama Samuthayam Valara Ethu oru Mun udaranamaka Amainthathu. Kirama pura Siruvarkalukku Ivvizha Thankal thiramiyai velipadutha oru Nalla Vaippaka Irunthathu. Ithu mathiriyana Kalai Nikazhichikal kirama makkalai ondru Servatharkku Oru Nalla palamaka Irunthathu.

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Mohanan Cultural Center prepared last Sunday presentation in Alankuppam of DVD, which was taken of on 26th of February in Visitors Center at their show of Dances of the World – which was done by common efforts of children, youngster and Albinca. Mohanam Cultural Center is trying to be a bridge between the traditional and the modern, is a place where can local children and others find form of art in which they would like to express themselves.

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My name is Muthukumar. I was born in Kuilapalayam in a poor family and studied in a government school there until the 4th standard. In 1994 I got the chance to join the Life Education Center in Kottakarai, where I studied for the next 7 years, learning masonry and typing. Also I learned about Auroville and the works of the Mother and Sri Aurobindo. Then, after studying in Pondicherry for 2 years, I got married. My next work was at Siddhartha Farm, and in the Auroville Boutique. But I would like to work in the area of social work. Now I'm working at the cafe “le Morgan” in the city center where I am happy; I have a beautiful life in Auroville. mp3/2009_04_22_interview_muthukumar_city_center_tamil_lite.mp3&totalTime=9:55

Meenakshi, the poet from the nursery. Her life is dedicated to poetry, Tamil culture and children. For young Auroville workers and school drop-outs, she runs an unusual program since she came here some 33 years ago. She published countless poems. In this interview, Meenakshi presents her educational and literary work; she shares especially her enthusiasm for the richness and beauty of tamil language.