Brenda Beck Meets with Appadurai Muttulingam

Earlier this week, Legend of Ponnivala creator and director Dr. Brenda Beck met with renowned author and literary magnate Mr. Appadurai Muttulingam at his home in Toronto. Mr. Muttulingam is a leader in the Tamil literary community internationally, having won several prestigious awards for his work. He is also a founding member of Toronto's Tamil Literary Garden.

In the photo: Left, Dr. Beck. Right, distinguished Tamil author and founder of the Tamil Literary Garden, Mr. Appadurai Muttulingam.
1. The complete transcripts from Dr. Beck's 1965 audio recording of the Annanmar Kathai.
2. The second version of the legend, which was dictated by the narrator and used for comparison with the original sung version.
3. Volumes One and Two of the complete Legend of Ponnivala graphic novel series.
4. Teaching materials and classroom guides for presenting The Legend of Ponnivala as an educational resource.

In the photo: Mr. Appadurai Muttulingam enjoys an interactive episode of The Legend of Ponnivala on the iPad.

Come to the Market

Have you seen the new face of the Ponnivala Market? All of our available digital and print editions gathered together in one convenient location, just in time for Christmas or Pongal.

Visit http://www.ponnivalamarket.com to check out what's going on with the latest releases from Ponnivala publishing.

We're also very excited to announce the release of our complete editions. The entire Ponnivala comic series is now available in two stunning volumes! Volume One contains books 1-13, and Volume Two contains books 14-26. These are a must have collector's item for fans of Indian comics, and for students of Indian heritage and culture. http://www.ponnivalamarket.com/books/print-editions/print-complete-series/

All of the items are currently our English editions, as we're currently compiling and editing the Tamil editions as we speak. We're hoping to have these availble, certainly in e-book formats, in time for gift-giving for Pongal (remember, these will be available worldwide for instant download, so there's no shipping charge or delivery time to worry about). Stay tuned!

The Legend of Ponnivala, Complete Edition (in print) now available!

A short while ago, we were pleased to announce that Series One of The Legend of Ponnivala had been made available on Amazon Kindle.

Now, by popular request, we have a print edition of the entire Ponnivala legend in two volumes!

Part One contains books 1-13 of our series. This is the story of the first two generations, from Parvati's creation of the nine farmer-brothers of Ponnivala to the return of Queen Tamarai and King Kunnutaiya from their long quest to Lord Shiva's Council Chambers.

Part Two contains Series 2 (books 14-26 of our series). This is the story of the birth of the twin hero-kings Ponnar and Shankar, and their sister Tangal, all of their adventures (and misadventures), and their battle against the giant boar Komban.

Both volumes are now available for purchase through our web store:

Volume One: https://www.createspace.com/4059889

Volume Two: https://www.createspace.com/4070239 

These beautiful books are in glorious full-colour and expertly bound. We're so excited to bring you this compendium edition, and hope you'll be able to add it to your collection. Plus, they'll make a great Christmas gift for children and grandchildren.

Also note that both volumes, as well as the first series of thirteen individual comics, are available on the Amazon.com and Amazon.eu networks as well. Just search "Ponnivala paperback" and see our entire print product line.

Thanks to everyone for your continued support. We're looking forward to sharing more exciting news with you as our freatures develop in bringing this fascinating piece of Tamil heritage to the world.

Ponnivala in Chicago

This past weekend, Dr. Beck represented the Ponnivala legend at the 2012 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Religion in Chicago.

Among the highlights for this event were a trip to the museum at the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago, and of course a screening of The Gates of Heaven (one of our feature film versions of the Ponnivala legend).

Dr. Beck was also pleased to attend the Plenary Address given by Dr. Harvey G. Cox, Jr.. The Harvard University Hollis Research Professor of Divinity gave a fascinating and insightful address on how and why renewal, reform, and transformation movements in religion tend to originate at what the religious mainstream usually thinks of as the "fringe" of its culture, rather than at the centre.

Happy Diwali!