On Vidyarambham, Shashi Tharoor makes little kids write their first letters

Vijayadashami morning is when thousands of little children in Kerala around the age of three are initiated into the world of letters.

The ritual called 'Vidyarambham' is held either at home or a temple or at any centre of learning and the person making the child write their first letter would be a parent, a revered guru, or a person of letters.

The parent or guru makes the child write the words 'Om Shri' on a platter of rice, along with prayers to Lord Ganesha, for an education free of obstacles, and Devi Saraswati, the goddess of learning.


Learned people in the neighbourhood are in demand for the Vidyarambham ritual, and so Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor, known for his erudition is sought after by many parents in his constituency to initiate their child into the world of letters.

On Wednesday, Tharoor at his home in the Kerala capital made nine kids write 'Om Shri' on a plate of rice in three different scripts.

"Received nine kids for #Vidyarambham at home today. Taught them “Om Shri" in three scripts, Devanagari, Malayalam & English, in the hope these will be useful to them throughout their lives," he later posted to Twitter.

Tharoor, who is aggressively contesting for thepost of Congress president, is now in Kerala as part of the poll campaign.

The polling for the Congress presidential election will be held on October 17. The counting of votes will be taken up on October 19 and the results will be declared the same day.

More than 9,000 Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) delegates will vote in the poll.