Mangaluru, August 28, 2020: Efforts to secure a place for Tulu in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution have received fresh momentum with the development and release of a Unicode-based Tulu script typing system, ‘Tulu Baravu’. The initiative is expected to make it easier to type, publish and digitally preserve Tulu in its traditional script.

Tulu has a rich literary heritage, with a long tradition of literature, novels, short stories, poetry, folk songs and other works. However, much of the contemporary literature has traditionally been published using Kannada or Roman scripts rather than the indigenous Tulu script. The availability of a Unicode-compatible system is therefore being seen as an important step towards expanding the use of the Tulu script in the digital era.

Tulu has its own historic script, which evolved from the Grantha tradition and was used for writing important literary and religious works in the region. Several inscriptions and historical manuscripts in the Tulu script have also been documented over the years.

The Tulu font team of Jai Tulunad (R.) has developed ‘Tulu Baravu’, a Unicode-based typing system designed to enable users to write in the Tulu script conveniently with the assistance of Latin/Roman characters. The initiative aims to make Tulu-script typing more accessible to the wider community and facilitate the creation of books and digital content in the traditional script.

The Unicode-based Tulu font ‘Tulu Baravu’ was formally released by Dayananda G. Kattal, then president of the Karnataka Tulu Sahitya Academy.

Following the guidance of the Academy president, Academy members Dr Akash Raj Jain and Tara Umesh Acharya, along with Jai Tulunad (R.) president Sudarshan Surathkal and other members of the organisation, were present on the occasion.

The development is being regarded as an important milestone in efforts to preserve, promote and digitally strengthen the Tulu language and its traditional script. Supporters of the Tulu language movement believe that wider digital accessibility to the script could encourage a new generation of writers, publishers and technology users to adopt Tulu script in everyday communication and literary production.