Shashi Tharoor initiates 2-yr-old into writing, tweets pics

Shashi Tharoor held the kid’s hand and traced “Om Hari Shri” in Malayalam, Sanskrit and English on a platter of rice grains.

Author and politician Shashi Tharoor recently delighted his Twitter followers by sharing pictures of himself with a two-year-old boy named Anantha Padmanabhan. The boy is the son of his colleague Prakash and is from Tharoor’s constituency. Along with the pictures, he mentioned that he introduced the kid to the world of writing by tracing the words “Om Hari Shri” with his fingers in three languages. While this ritual is traditionally performed on Vidyarambham day, which signifies the initiation of children into the realm of knowledge, Tharoor emphasises that learning should happen every day.

Shashi Tharoor with two-year-old boy Anantha Padmanabhan. (Twitter/@ShashiTharoor)

“First thing today: My Thiruvananthapuram based colleague Prakash brought his two and a half year old son Anantha Padmanabhan to be initiated into writing, something that normally happens at the annual Vidyarambham day. Since learning should happen every day, I gladly traced “Om Hari Shri” with his finger in three scripts (Malayalam, Sanskrit and English) on a platter of rice grains. He seemed to enjoy it!” wrote Shashi Tharoor while sharing pictures on Twitter.

The pictures show the kid sitting in Tharoor’s lap as they trace “Om Hari Shri” in Malayalam, Sanskrit and English on a platter of rice grains.

Take a look at the pictures here:

Since being shared on May 21, the tweet has been viewed over 1.2 lakh times and the numbers are still increasing. Additionally, it has raked a plethora of likes and comments. The comments reflect both admiration for the child’s early exposure to the world of writing and concern for preserving the joys of a carefree childhood.

Here’s how people reacted to Shashi Tharoor’s tweet:

“He and his family must be feeling very blessed,” posted an individual. Another added, “What a lucky boy Anantha Padmanabhan is, to be initiated into writing by you!! Bless Bless. Beautiful moment captured.” “May he become another prodigy!” expressed a third. A fourth commented, “Great start for him….lovely pics…But at two and half? I hope the kid gets to enjoy a few more years of carefree childhood before entering the grind.” “That kid is learning words in English, Hindi and Malayalam that would require a dictionary,” shared a fifth.