Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Dec 23: In a remarkable initiative to preserve and promote Tulu, Sachin, an electrician from Mangaluru, has developed TuluVerse, a comprehensive web and mobile application designed to make learning and using the Tulu language easier and more accessible.
The app combines features such as a Tulu dictionary, an instant translator, and a Tulu calendar, all on a single platform.
Sachin, who studied only up to Class 10, said the app was created to cater to both beginners and fluent speakers of Tulu. Launched around two weeks ago, TuluVerse is gradually gaining popularity among language enthusiasts and young users.
“The initiative was inspired by the need to make Tulu more accessible. Finding exact translations for Tulu words is often challenging,” Sachin said.
“I did not have formal coding knowledge, so I learned online and used AI tools to develop the app through various free platforms. Paid tools could have reduced the development time to three or four days, but relying on free platforms meant the process took over five months,” he said.
He explained that getting the app live was another challenge. “It was rejected twice during the testing phase, but eventually, we succeeded. The user base is now slowly increasing,” he added.
The Tulu Cultural and Research Foundation supported the project by providing necessary vocabulary. TuluVerse supports multiple languages, including Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Konkani, Marathi, Hindi, English, and Sanskrit.
The app allows users to explore 22 categories, including birds, animals, food, body parts, and more, all in Tulu script. For beginners, details are also provided in Kannada and English scripts to facilitate learning.
Sachin, whose parents are Sundar and Mohini from Edapadavu, emphasised the personal satisfaction of creating the app. “Despite being an electrician, I wanted to contribute meaningfully to my mother tongue. When we speak Tulu, we often mix it with English or other languages. This app will help preserve the language for future generations,” he said.
The application, developed with a modest investment of just Rs 2,000, is now available on the Google Play Store. Within 14 days of its release, it has been downloaded by over 1,700 users and can function offline once installed.
Looking ahead, Sachin plans to expand TuluVerse to include audio-visual storytelling to document legendary tales from Tulunadu, though work on this content is yet to begin.