Rashtrakavi Govinda Pai's house to be developed into a centre of literature

Finally, the dilapidated house of Rashtrakavi Govinda Pai at Manjeshwar in Kasargod district of Kerala will be developed into a national centre of literature and arts.

The project named "Gilivindu" (named after one of the compilations of Govinda Pai) will come up on 1.80 acres and will be jointly funded by Kerala, Karnataka and the Union Ministry of Culture.

Thanks to the initiative taken by the former Chief Minister and chairman of the Administrative Reforms Commission M. Veerappa Moily, "Gilivindu" has been a long cherished dream of the admirers of Govinda Pai.

Much of the work towards the conception of the project started in 2005 when the then Chief Minister N. Dharam Singh extended financial support of Rs. 5 lakh towards the restoration of the house where Govinda Pai lived.

Govinda Pai was born in a Saraswath family and his mother tongue was Konkani. He lived in Kerala where Malayalam is the official language.

He wrote in Kannada and his major works are "Golgotha," "Vaishakhi," "Yesukrista" and "Gauthama Buddha."

His songs and poems, including "Thaye Baare Mogava Thore Kannadigara Matheye" are very popular. Govinda Pai mastered 14 languages.

He was the first to present Kannada plays modelled on the Japanese "Noe" type of plays.

The cultural centre will have all the modern facilities that a national centre for research in culture and literature should have.

For those performing Yakshagana they will be a special make-up room "Bannada Mane" and an indoor theatre "Bhavanika."

The exhibition area will be called "Manollasa." The centre will have a separate facility for performing arts and folklore "Parthisubba- yakshadegula." The library will be known as "Saraswatha."

Other facilities which the centre proposes to have include "Kanthapathra," which is a museum of sorts.

"Nalanda" will be a research facility and the centre for contemporary art and criticism will be called "Samatholana."

Work on the centre will start in November and will be completed in 18 months, according to Mr. Moily.

Union Minister for Culture Ambika Soni has promised Rs. 1 crore towards the centre. NRI associations, individuals and the family members of Govinda Pai would also contribute to the project, he said.

The project secretary B.V. Kakkillaya says though Govinda Pai's works were in Kannada he was one of the poet laureates of Kerala who scaled great heights.

The other poet laureate Narayana Menon Volathod has been already honoured through a learning centre at Thrissur in Kerala.

Kannada University at Hampi, Kannur University and Mangalore University have also promised help for the project.

Mr. Moily is optimistic that such as centre will also come up in the name of another celebrated Kannada writer K. Shivaram Karanth.