KOCHI: You might think literary get-togethers, leisurely affairs combined with cups of coffee or tea, are passe in the age of the Kindle, round-the-clock jobs and online publishing houses. But that’s where the MTIE Writers’ Forum might just surprise you.
The forum, boasting known and budding writers in Malayalam, Tamil and Indian English (shortened to MTIE) in its membership, recently celebrated its 101st monthly meeting in the state capital. And you couldn’t find anything more literarily serious than this trilingual forum, says its president, the poet G N Panikkar.
‘’We meet on the fourth Sunday of every month at the Thainadu Hall on Chirakulam Road at Statue. And I can tell you that we haven’t missed a single meeting in all these years, except one. That time, the month had five Sundays and the hall management thought we would meet on the fifth and promised the hall to another group on the fourth Sunday. Rather than meet elsewhere, we cancelled that one meeting,’’ remembers Panikkar, who regularly presents his English poems at the meetings.
The schedule is simple. The members present their newest works - it has to be unpublished, the rules are particular about that - whether it be a poem or a short story in any of the three languages. One condition is that 15 or 20 copies of the work are distributed to the members beforehand. The presentation is followed by criticism. All conditions are strictly adhered to. The MTIE Writers’ Forum does not allow book releases or offerings of condolences at its meetings.
The origins of the forum can be traced back to literary get-togethers organised by literary stalwarts like K Ayyappa Panicker at the British Library in the state capital. Inspired by their success, Panikkar, along with a few other city residents including Vijayan Panicker and Dr Venugopal had roped in the Tamil and Malayalam writer Neela Padmanabhan to give shape to the MTIE Writers’ Forum. ‘’Literary meetings are becoming rarer nowadays. But there are young people who have become writers just by attending these sessions,’’ says writer Neela Padmanabhan, who was until recently the president of the forum.
‘’In fact, take my case, I’ve been writing less and less due to age-related problems. But I have written 30-35 poems since I was compelled to present a poem at the meetings. I’ve even published collections in Malayalam and Tamil with poems written for the sessions at Thainadu Hall,’’ Padmanabhan, who lives at Aryasala, said. At present, Jacintha Morris is the vice president of the forum and M Parthivan, the secretary. ‘’The membership fee is Rs 300 for a year. It’s an informal get-together, but seen very seriously by its members,’’ says Madhu Vandanoor, the joint secretary.