Onam: Boat races, tiger dance and more...
Kaikotti kali and Thumbi Thullal are two graceful dances performed by women on Onam
Get to know Kerala's biggest and the most important festival that celebrates harvest and the joy it brings with it
Onam is an annual Hindu festival that is celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm in the southern-most state of Kerala in India. It is a harvest festival that is welcomed particularly by the farming community.
The festivals fallsin the Malayalam calendar month of Chingam, which in Gregorian calendar overlaps with August–September. This year, Onam starts from tomorrow on 25th August and ends on 6th September.
Itis a major annual event for Malayali people in and outside Kerala.
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Snake boat race (Others)
It marks the summer harvest and is celebrated with numerous festivities. It includes Vallam Kali (boat races), Pulikali (tiger dances), Pookkalam (flower arrangement), Onathappan (worship), Onam Kali, Tug of War, Thumbi Thullal (women's dance), Kummati kali (mask dance), Onathallu (martial arts), Onavillu (music), Kazhchakkula (plantain offerings), Onapottan (costumes), Atthachamayam (folk songs and dance), and other celebrations.
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Kaikotti kali and Thumbi Thullal are two graceful dances performed by women on Onam (Others)
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It is the New Year day for Malayali Hindus.
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Food plays an important part in the festivities. About 22 to 26 dishes are made and are served on the green leaf. (Others)
The state celebrates the festival by giving public holidays to people that start four days from Onam Eve (Uthradom).
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People wear new clothes and decorate their homes in Onam (Others)
Interestingly, even though it is a Hindu festival, Onam is celebrated across non-Hindu communities of Kerala.
During the Onam, Keralite Hindus install an image of Thrikkakara Appan or Onatthappan (Vishnu in the form of Vamana) in their homejust as Hindus install images or murtis of Lord Ganesha on the Ganesha Chaturthi festival elsewhere.
(WION)