Kälam, a space for cultural encounters, is run by the independent arts professional Kirutharshan Nicholas from Jaffna, an experienced actor, director and cultural facilitator. Supported by the Goethe-Institut Kälam opened its doors to the public in 2020. Since then, it has been functioning as an interactive site by facilitating cultural exchanges, collaborations, and by supporting art practitioners who explore imaginative paths beyond traditional horizons. Located in Jaffna Kälam has been actively contributed to the emergence of an active cultural scene in the Northern part of Sri Lanka through collaborations with the Goethe-Institut and other partners. Since 2025 Kälam has established German language classes in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut, closing a long-felt gap in the North.
Kälam is a multifaceted Tamil word with many meanings. It is spelled with the German Umlaut "ä" to match the Tamil pronunciation. Amongst other activities, Kälam hosts photography exhibitions, regular film screenings, thematic symposiums, literary exchanges, artist lead workshops and is a home for dancers and performers who take an interest in contemporary practices. Its aim is to build bridges between artists, writers, intellectuals, academics and those involved in all forms of creative activities from Sri Lanka, Germany and across the world.
Throughout the years Kälam has hosted a variety of culturally significant events, including:
- Jaffna Photography Festival, 2020 - ongoing
The three editions of the festival promote photography as an art form that spans different viewpoints and tales. It includes the work of over 36 national and international photographers, providing an opportunity for meaningful exchange and artistic inquiry.
- Theatre Performance “I´m hungry too”, 2024
This first original Kälam theatre production was created to commemorate the 15th Mullivaikal Remembrance Day, at the end of the armed conflict in Sri Lanka. The powerful performance is composed in five acts of 25 interwoven monologues drawn from real-life experiences of individuals affected by the conflict in Jaffna and accompanied by a live score performed on stage.
- Cultural Exchange Program between Jaffna and Tamil Nadu, 2025
- A two-day cultural exchange program took place in Jaffna for a visiting Indian group from Tamil Nadu, designed to introduce participants to Jaffna’s culture, traditions, and ancestral heritage, while also creating a meaningful dialogue between neighbouring Tamil communities.
- A total of 120 Indian Tamil participants took part in this two-day event.
- Photography Exhibition “Shadows of the past” by Tharmapalan Tilaxan, 2025
The exhibition explores post-war realities, focusing on lost lands and homes, people’s memories, wounded experiences, trauma, and ancestral memory, while critically reflecting on the darker sides of the war.
- Jaffna Poetry Festival, 2026
- The festival brought together poets, writers, artists, academics, students, and audiences across generations for two days of poetry, conversation, exhibitions, book launches, and artistic exchange in Jaffna
- Among the invited poets were Anitha Thambi, Sukumaran, and Kutty Revathi from Tamil Nadu, India, alongside poets, writers, artists, academics, and emerging literary voices from Jaffna.
- It featured the poetry installation “Geography of Absence” by artist-poet P.Ahilan as well as an outdoor display by over 45 poets curated by Nilanthan covering the exterior walls of the Kälam building with historic poems from the 1970ies until current.
- Visual Art Exhibition “Infinite Rings: Wood / Memories” by Sarmila Sooriyakumar, 2026
- The exhibition explores the relationship between wood, memory, cultural heritage, belief systems, and the changing ways of life within Jaffna society.
- Sarmila Sooriyakumar is a female artist from Thirunelvely, Jaffna, whose artistic practice is rooted in the traditional wood-carving heritage of northern Sri Lanka.
- Poetry Installation “Geography of Absence” by P. Ahilan, 2026
In this haunting poetry installation P. Ahilan layers poems and x-ray photography on lightboxes to depict the trauma that have occurred in the lives of Tamils after 1990s, such as the displacement of the people, the loss of villages, the loss of limbs, the disappearance and death.
Thaisen Rusch was born in Sri Lanka but adopted by a German family and raised in Europe. He returned to Sri Lanka to learn more about his heritage and to explore the opportunities for cross-cultural collaborations between Germany and Sri Lanka in the musical field. Kälam presented the first western opera concert in Jaffna to a selected but diverse audience in a very intimate setting.
During the design lab participants from diverse disciplines explored the untapped potential of seaweed as a sustainable biomaterial.
