The C-DAC Siva (often referred to as CDACT_Siva) is a popular Malayalam font developed by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) as part of their GIST (Graphics and Intelligence Based Script Technology) project. Download and Official Access
C-DAC fonts are proprietary and typically bundled with professional software packages like ISM or Leap Office.
Official Purchase/Upgrade: Licensed users should contact a C-DAC sales representative to upgrade retail software to the latest versions.
Evaluation Software: C-DAC advises that licensed users should not download evaluation versions to upgrade their retail products.
Community Discussions: Users often seek this font in community forums like Swathanthra Malayalam Computing (SMC), though it is important to note that SMC does not maintain or develop C-DAC fonts. Technical Features & Interesting Content
Sakal Bharati Font: While Siva is specific, C-DAC also offers the Sakal Bharati font, which is a Unicode-based Open Type font supporting 13 different Indian scripts (including Malayalam, Assamese, Bengali, and Devanagari) in a single font file. c dac siva 2.0 font download
Monothick Design: Siva is known for its monothick glyphs, where horizontal and vertical stems have equal thickness, providing a uniform and clean appearance for Malayalam text.
Unicode Support: Modern versions of C-DAC tools focus on Open Type formats to ensure compatibility across various applications and operating systems. Alternative Malayalam Fonts
If you are looking for free, open-source alternatives for Malayalam typing, consider these options:
Google Noto Sans Malayalam: A highly versatile, unmodulated ("sans serif") design with multiple weights and 364 glyphs, available for free on Google Fonts.
AnjaliOldLipi: A widely used font for traditional Malayalam script. The C-DAC Siva (often referred to as CDACT_Siva)
There are dozens of Telugu fonts available online, but C-DAC Siva 2.0 stands out for several reasons:
Government-Backed Standardization – As a product of C-DAC, this font adheres to the official Telugu character encoding standards (ISCII and Unicode compliant). This means documents created with this font are less likely to show garbled text when shared with government systems or official portals.
High Legibility – The font design prioritizes clarity. Unlike decorative fonts, Siva 2.0 features balanced glyphs, making it ideal for lengthy documents, textbooks, and official reports.
Complete Character Set – It supports all vowels, consonants, vowel signs (othulu), and samyuktaksharas (conjunct characters) used in modern Telugu. Many free fonts lack support for rare conjuncts, but Siva 2.0 has you covered.
Cross-Platform Compatibility – Once installed, the font works seamlessly across Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Adobe Photoshop, CorelDRAW, and even web browsers. "I installed it, but the text still shows as boxes
Free and Legal – Unlike pirated fonts, C-DAC Siva 2.0 is freely available for personal, educational, and commercial use.
A search for "C-DAC Siva 2.0 font download" can be a minefield. The font falls into a gray area of "abandonware"—software that is technically copyrighted but no longer actively distributed or sold by the creator.
Once you have found a legitimate c dac siva 2.0 font download link, follow these instructions for different operating systems.
Solution: Disable other input methods. Remove any unnecessary keyboard layouts from your language settings. Also, check if your document has complex formatting – try pasting into a plain text editor first.