Praveen Alva wants to evoke Mangaluru’s life and language through Tulu music session

Get ready for an hour-long music session with Tulu singer-songwriter Praveen Alva at Ranga Shankara this weekend. Praveen, who had recently released a song called Prarthaney (prayer) in Tulu, is back again with Emotions, and Mother-Tongue. The session will have the self-taught singer use the tools of storytelling and memory to invoke emotion.
Singing songs in Tulu in cosmopolitan Bengaluru, will not be a barrier between him and the audience, says the singer since the session is designed to let people establish a connection with each song through their own interpretation.
“Each of my songs is about different scenarios and stories while growing up in Mangaluru. There are 8-10 songs in varied rhythms. However, before I start, I will be setting a context for the song and telling people a little about it and the emotion that I am trying to convey through it. Then, it is left to the audience to interpret each song,” he adds.
He will give people a glimpse into the coastal life and culture of Mangaluru. “The idea is to take people through my experience of writing in my mother tongue and also create an awareness about the 2,500-year-old language.”

Talking about how writing in Tulu helped him in this creative journey, Praveen reveals, “My mother tongue actually gave me the freedom to write, helped me tell stories without having to get stuck in between fiddling with the context. The lyrics just flew after a point. Tulu language has such beautiful words that I was compelled to give the language a platform.”