What does ikkarai mean?
The word ‘ikkarai’ means ‘this shore’ in Tamil. Most Tamil speakers know it from the saying ‘ikkarai-kku akkarai pachai’ which means ‘to this shore the other shore looks green’. This familiar phrase is often said to remind us that we should work with what we have rather than longing for seemingly greener pastures.
For us, ‘ikkarai’ represents what we all have in common – what belongs to all of us, what we are rooted to, from which we face the sea of the future. We may strive for a better world, or contend with limited resources, but we do it together from this shore.