ShareMemories of Malayalam, Urdu and Tagalog sections still evoke nostalgia
KUWAIT: Former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s state visit to Kuwait in May 1981 marked a watershed moment in the history of Kuwait Times as the paper published a two-page Malayalam manuscript supplement along with its main English edition to commemorate the historic visit.
Former Kuwait Times Executive Editor K P Mohanan had reached out to veteran Indian journalist late V K Madhavankutty, who was part of the prime ministerial entourage, to explore the possibility of a special Malayalam supplement that could be brought from India for Kuwait Times on the occasion. Madhavankutty agreed and brought a two-page special supplement with him, featuring Gandhi’s momentous Kuwait trip — handwritten in Malayalam.
As Kuwait Times celebrates its anniversary today, the timeline of 63 years of its evolution and growth will not be complete without a mention of the Malayalam and Urdu sections which were part of its onward journey for 27 years. A weekly Filipino Panorama section was also published along with the main edition for over 18 years, catering to the large Filipino community in the country.
“The overwhelming acceptance of the special supplement by the Malayali community in Kuwait during Indira Gandhi’s visit prompted the management to think about launching a vernacular section in Malayalam alongside the main newspaper,” Mohanan told the Kuwait Times over the telephone from India. Setting a benchmark, Kuwait Times Founder and Publisher late Yousuf Al-Alyan gave the green signal to launch a two-page Malayalam section along with the main newspaper on September 1, 1982.
Unprecedented initiative
“It was unprecedented in the region as it was a first for the Middle East and a historic initiative in Kuwait’s media world. As far as I know, a Malayalam broadsheet newspaper was being printed at that time outside India only in Singapore,” Mohanan said. Late V K Sathyanathan was the manuscript writer for the Malayalam section. Within two years, the transition from manuscript format to computer typefaces took place with the deployment of German typefaces and printing technology.
Kuwait Times had to suspend publication in the aftermath of the Iraqi invasion in 1990. After the liberation in 1992, the Malayalam section resumed publication along with the main newspaper. “Many people who began writing in Kuwait Times Malayalam section later became noted writers and published their own books,” recalls Malayil Moosa Koya, who was the chief of the Malayalam section from 1983 till 2009.
For many expats, memories of the Malayalam and Urdu sections in the Kuwait Times still evoke nostalgia. “As soon as it commenced publication, the Malayalam section became a source of inspiration and excitement for thousands Malayali expats in Kuwait. In fact, it promoted a cultural awakening among Kuwait’s Malayalis by creating an environment for people like us to gather and interact,” said Sam Painummoodu, a Malayalam writer who started subscribing to the newspaper in the early ‘80s.
Another milestone
Kuwait Times set another milestone on July 31, 1993 with the launch of the Urdu section. Late veteran journalist Masudullah Khan, who was the Executive Editor at Kuwait Times, played a critical role in molding the section with the support of Said Safdar. Later, Mohammed Omar joined the Urdu section, succeeding Safdar as its head, and continued to lead it until the section was closed in 2009.
Although Filipino Panorama started in the late 1990s, Kuwait Times senior reporter Ben Garcia re-introduced a refurbished version of it in January 2004. The Panorama, a curious blend of Tagalog and English, influenced and inspired the Filipino community in Kuwait with local Filipino stories, current affairs from the Philippines, local sport events and embassy updates.
“Most of the Asian expats in Kuwait had difficulty following English language properly, whereas tens of thousands of people can speak and read Urdu in Kuwait. Most importantly, the Urdu and Malayalam sections were the only sources of local news for them,” Omar said, recalling how Urdu-speaking expats cherished the Urdu pages in Kuwait Times.
Both Urdu and Malayalam sections soon became popular literal mouthpieces for Urdu-speaking and Malayali communities in Kuwait. In view of the growing demand, the management decided to increase the number of pages from two to four each. Building community interfaces, both sections contained reports of happenings in the communities as the sections mirrored the sociocultural ethos of their motherlands. They extensively covered local news reports and even provided spaces for aspiring expat writers to contribute to columns in the newspaper.
“The Malayali community overwhelmingly embraced Kuwait Times’ Malayalam section because it acted as a sociocultural bridge between India and Kuwait. Above all, hundreds of Malayali cultural groups relied on the Malayalam section to publish reports of their events,” Moosa Koya added.
Late Wajid Ishaq, Farrukh Kamal, Emad, Naeem, Shabana and Khaled Amin among others worked for the Urdu section in various capacities, while Charlie Benjamin, Sudhakaran, A M Hassan, Lalitha, Daisy and Sabu worked in the Malayalam section.
Recalling one of the most shocking and impactful news reports the Malayalam section covered, Mohanan said, “The reportage of Indira Gandhi's assassination on October 31, 1984 was an epoch-making one for the Malayalam section. Kuwait Times brought out special supplements both in English and Malayalam on November 1, 1984 with the enormous support of Indian companies and organizations,” he recalled.
However, on Aug 18, 2009, Kuwait Times closed its Malayalam and Urdu sections, bringing down the curtain on an impactful era in the history of the newspaper. In 2017, Kuwait Times also decided to discontinue Filipino Panorama.
