Kuala Lumpur, Feb 8 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that the Tamil language connects India and Malaysia and expressed hope that the Audio Visual Agreement between the two nations will "bring our hearts closer".

Addressing a joint press meet with his Malaysian counterpart, Anwar Ibrahim, in Kuala Lumpur, PM Modi highlighted the interest of the Malaysians in the Tamil language and said, "Shared love for the Tamil language also connects India and Malaysia."

"In Malaysia, the strong and living presence of Tamil can be seen in education, media and cultural life. I am confident that with today's Audio Visual Agreement, film and music, especially Tamil films, will bring our hearts closer," he added.

Earlier on Saturday, the Prime Minister hailed the "grand celebration of Indian culture" in Malaysia, especially the record-breaking dance performance during the 'Selamat Datang Modiji' event, which was attended by over 12,000 members of the Indian diaspora, friends of India from across the country and also Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim.

In his address at the event, PM Modi highlighted that Malaysia has the second-largest Indian-origin community in the world and noted that there is much that connects Indian and Malaysian hearts.

He also highlighted that the people of the two countries understand each other well, possibly due to the large number of common words between their languages and Malay, and have heard that Indian movies and music are popular in Malaysia. PM Modi noted that Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim sings very well, and also loves Tamil songs of the legendary MGR.

Prime Minister Modi reiterated that the Indian-origin community in Malaysia had preserved its traditions over centuries. He recalled mentioning the community in his 'Mann Ki Baat' programme, where he shared that over 500 schools in Malaysia teach children in Indian languages.

"The influence of saints such as Thiruvalluvar and Swami Vivekananda is visible in Malaysia, and the recent Thaipusam celebrations at Batu Caves are divine and comparable to those at Palani," he noted. Prime Minister Modi also said that Garba is popular in Malaysia and added that India deeply cherishes its cultural ties with the Sikh community, which continues to promote the teachings of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji.

Stating that Tamil is India's gift to the world, PM Modi noted that Tamil literature is eternal, Tamil culture is global, and Tamil people have served humanity through their talents.

"India's Vice President Thiru C P Radhakrishnan, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Dr Murugan are all from Tamil Nadu," he told the large gathering.

Prime Minister Modi further said that members of the Tamil diaspora in Malaysia are serving society in various fields and noted that the Tamil diaspora has been present in Malaysia for many centuries.

He said that, inspired by this history, India had established the Thiruvalluvar Chair at the University of Malaya and would now set up a Thiruvalluvar centre to further strengthen shared heritage.

/IANS