The Tamil word Venpaa refers to a branch of classical Tamil poetry. Bearing this classic Tamil name, a distinctive bookstore called Venpaa has become the talk of the town in Jaffna since its inception in December 2018.
Venpaa (located on College Road, next to the Hindu Primary School) is the first concept bookstore in Jaffna. Its dedicated to provide the best Tamil books published in different parts of the world in one place. Its online platform can be accessed at www.venpaa.lk, where you can buy world-wide Tamil publications.
This bookstore, where everything is handpicked, fulfills the void that prevailed in Jaffna in terms of buying books. The community which had seen the ravages of war for three decades is in the process of recovering and healing through resilience. This happens through learning, understanding and knowledge sharing. Valuable books are the dire need of the younger generation in Jaffna.
A goal of Venpaa is to enhance the creative intelligence of youth. To achieve this task, the availability of good books which can develop critical thinking and reading skills is needed. Good fiction is a great source that builds readers’ creativity and moulds their thoughts. For this purpose, Venpaa chooses books through scrutiny. The books range from Fiction, Non-fiction, Children’s books, Tamil classics, Science fiction, History, Philosophy, Spirituality to Tamil translations of World literature.
Venpaa’s physical outlet is not luxurious but rather serene and soothing. Set in a beautiful space, it gives an invigorating feel as you enter. Its interior is minute, thoughtful and excellently designed. The books are arranged based on the genre and are placed in wooden shelves. Books and wooden shelves go hand in hand as beautiful companions and this is one such minute detail in Venpaa.
The creative mind behind this innovative bookstore is a 29-year- old young man - Sudharshan Subramaniam.
Sudharshan was born and bred in Jaffna. As a child, he had experienced war first-hand. He grew up listening to the stories of war from his grandmother and one story which affected him the most and which is one of the reasons behind the creation of Venpaa is the burning of the Jaffna public library.
His family was forced to leave their home in Jaffna during the war in 1995. Sudharshan and his family arrived in Colombo through a life-threatening journey. Ever since he left Jaffna, his mind was set on doing something for his people.
Sudharshan is an avid reader and writer. His writing speaks directly to the soul and portrays the most intricate and nuanced human emotions. As a voracious reader, he always felt the lack of availability of good Tamil books in Sri Lanka. What he lacked, he wanted the next generation to have.
Venpaa is the successful outcome of this young man’s dream to provide the best for the Jaffna community in the form of books. Books at Venpaa are chosen by him.
Born into a middle-class family, Sudharshan made his dream come true through dedication and hard work. Eight months after opening Venpaa, he has achieved what he strived for - a concept bookstore for the Jaffna community.
He has also earned a place for himself in the book-fair in Jaffna scheduled to take place from August 27 - September 1 at Veerasingam Hall. Venpaa will be there at Stall No.18.
-Niharika