Malayalees feel at home in Mangalore

When Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon, he wondered seeing a tea shop of a Malayali there. Shop owner offered him a tea it seems! Don’t know whether Armstrong had tea or not, but the presence of Keralites in any corner of the world is an unquestionable fact. No difference for Mangalore either. Keralites are that much mingled in to this coastal city’s daily life. We can find their presence in different sectors of life.

From street vendors to State/Central government offices, there is a strong presence of people from the small southern state of India. Keralites came here, contributed to the development of the city and have become part and parcel of the City. Many people who came here to eke out a living, settled here and accepted Mangalore as their second home. Thousands of students are coming to this coastal city from Kerala for higher studies year after year.

Kerala Samajam Mangalore, the association of Mangalore Keralites is one of the organisations which actively takes part in the Mangalore’s social arena. The samajam, which is entering to its 55th year is encouraging the various social and cultural activities in the city and nearby areas with different projects and programmes. The Kerala Samajam is also active in the education field. They have Kerala Samajam English Medium School in Attavar.

History

Keralites were very active in Mangalore since when it was a part of Madras Presidency.
Mangalore Kerala Club which was formed in 1917 was one of the oldest associations of Keralites in Mangalore. Formerly this club was meant for only the government officers in Mangalore. But later, professors from St Aloysius College and other government colleges and merchants also became part of the club. Kerala Club along with Malayali Mahajana Sabha, which was formed in 1936 and Kerala Kala Samithi merged together on March 20, 1957 to form Kerala Samajam.

The founders of Kerala Samajam were K P Kunjikannan, T M G Nedungady, N K Karunakaran, C Damodaran and M C Gopalan Vaidyar. The current building on K S Rao Road, the Kerala Samajam working was the property of Kerala Club and the land now the Kerala Samajam High School situated belonged to Malayali Mahajana Sabha.

Kerala Samajam is the only association in Mangalore representing Keralites. The Samajam is involved in many social activities in the Mangalore taluk limit. It has got a women’s wing and arts wing. The association is running classes on instruments and dance. The community programme of the samajam includes mass feeding in different orphanages, old age homes and hospitals. One of the most noted project of Kerala Samajam is the ‘Akhara Deepam’ launched in 2011 to teach Malayalam to the interested persons. “The project is getting a very good response from the people.

Even many students from Karnataka are joining the classes to learn Malayalam,” said Kerala Samajam Secretary Ajith Kumar V S.  The helping hand of Kerala Samajam extends also to the patients in different hospitals suffering without money. “Kerala Samajam conducts blood donaton and financial help to poor patients as well who require dialysis etc. We are also conducting free medical camps for the public,” he added.

Kerala Samajam which is celebrating its emerald jubilee this year is planning for a one year long program. The jubilee celebrations will be inaugurated during the Onam Festival celebrations which will be held from September 4 onwards. As a part of the programme, the association is also planning for a South Indian Film Award night in Mangalore.