together with three other major languages namely Malay, English and Chinese. Initially the programmes were aired from Singapore, Penang and Kuala Lumpur. A wellknown broadcaster Mr. Tanjai Thomas supervised Tamil Broadcast from Kuala Lumpur. During the Japanese occupation from 1943 to 1944 the broadcast was known as JMPK.Mr.T.S. Shanmugam was then the head of Tamil Broadcast. Oriental Building in Mountbatten Road, (now Jalan Tun Perak) housed the broadcasting station then. In 1951 a ward in Hospital Tang Ling converted into recording studio. Federal house in Kuala Lumpur became the official Radio House in 1956. When emergency declared during the Communist threat in Malaya, a special broadcast called “ Emergency ” aired along the normal broadcast. Audience shows were introduced in 1957 during which “ Kalappadam ” made its debut. The format of the programme is retained till this day because of its popularity. The first “Kalappadam ” was broadcast from KL Town Hall ( now Dewan Bandar Raya ).

A special stage programme dedicated to Bapa Malaysia Tunku Abdul Rahman was held in Tasik Perdana, Kuala Lumpur.

News was aired from Singapore, while programmes such as regional news, classical music, radio plays were produced in Kuala Lumpur and Penang. Mr. Tanjai Thomas, Mr. A.Peter, Mr.S.Swaminathan, Mr. A.R.Iyer, Mr.Rama Iyer, Mr.Haneef and Mr. Sunder raj were the pioneers in Tamil Broadcasting in Malaysia. In 1961, Mr.R.Balakrishnan became the Head of Indian services.During his leadership the Indian service bloomed. Air time was extended. Tamil broadcast then changed its name to Bahagian India. In 1970 it became Rangkaian Merah and the unit system was introduced. In mid 1970’s Kamala Desigan became the first lady to head the service. The service underwent further expansion under the leadership of Mr. Ganapathy and Mr. Appadurai. During this period the unit system was abolished and Rangkaian Merah rename as Radio 6. In 1994 Mr. V.Poobalan took over as the controller of Radio 6. During his leadreship Radio 6 went fully on FM transmission and became the first 24 hours Tamil broadcast service in the world (launched in 1 st July 1997 ). This station has become very popular among listeners and sponsors. Year 2001 saw another change in the leadership. USM graduate Mr.B.Parthasarathee became the new head of Radio 6. Among new programmes introduced were Kuralamutham, Vetriyalar Or Arimugam and Ennanggal Vananggal.

April 1st of 2005 Radio 1, 4, 5, & 6 rebranded to give a new outlook. Mr.Parthasarathee played a very important role in rebranding radio 6, as the head of the section. Minnal fm was the new name given on the rebranding day. Minister of Information Dato Seri Kadir Sheikh Fadzir launched the ceremony in Auditorium Besar Angkasapuri. This fabulous incident will be forever in the history of Tamil broadcast in Malaysia. The same year, a new head for the section (Minnal fm) Mr.Raja Sekaran came to the post. Now there are a lot of changes in the programs and more of outside events. For example : Deepavali Carnival, Stage shows and more upcoming events. Today Minnal FM is a popular station which is aired 24 hours, not only among Malaysian Indians , but also Indian origins worldwide.