Shankar spent years studying historical sites and scripts to build Udhayam.in, which features an interactive map alongside image and word mapping tools. The project originally evolved from a traditional kolam design showcase into an epigraphy hub after he developed the Adinatha Tamil-Brahmi font in 2012. He balances this demanding research by dedicating six hours daily outside his private-sector design job. To sustain the archive, he independently covers nearly 90 percent of its Rs 10 lakh annual operating expenses.
Key points
Shankar personally finances nearly 90 percent of the platform's Rs 10 lakh annual mainten…: Shankar personally finances nearly 90 percent of the platform's Rs 10 lakh annual maintenance budget.
The initiative successfully aligned decades of historical boundary data with modern admin…: The initiative successfully aligned decades of historical boundary data with modern administrative regions to verify inscription locations.
Support for the archival work relies on a small network of student typists, volunteers, a…: Support for the archival work relies on a small network of student typists, volunteers, and occasional equipment donations.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
Udhaya Shankar was quite young in 2007. It was the time when the internet was still juggling to find its place in everyday life of Indian people. But even then, Udhaya, a young designer from Tamil Nadu thought of an idea which was to showcase the traditional kolam designs to the world. And now, nearly 20 years later, that modest initiative has grown into something far more significant.
Udhaya, a full-time designer, has now created a digital platform that makes more than 8,500 ancient Tamil inscriptions searchable online. It is now helping students, researchers and history enthusiasts explore centuries of Tamil heritage.
A remarkable contributionUdhaya’s contribution is quite significant and remarkable to heritage preservation which also earned him the THT Prof. S. Swaminathan Heritage Award 2026. Along with a citation, the recognition came with a cash prize of Rs 50,000. However, for Shankar, the real reward lies in making a part of India's history accessible to people who might otherwise never get an opportunity to explore it.
This is the story of Udhayam.in, the digital archive developed painstakingly.
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