By Inam Hussain(09th May, 2008)
After three months of heavy rains when brooks, lakes and rivers overflows
and flowers blooms all over, a little ray of sun sneak through the gray
clouds, in Kerala it is the time of reap the harvest and enjoy. In Kerala
Onam is the most important festival coincides with the harvest season in
Kerala as well as the onset of Malayali New Year, Chingam. The time is also
famed for grand boat race when people come up with their snake boats and
country crafts in holy celebration. Along the sacred Pamba river there are
various colorful festivals are organised.
The boat race is an amazingly charismatic event and the main feature of the
Onam celebration. The one in Aranmulla is hugely popular where thousands of
people gather on the banks of the river Pamba to witness the spectacular
event. Boats are rowed by oarsmen clad in white dhotis and turbans. Almost
30 snake boats or chundan vallams take part in the race. According to a
legend, a spiritual head Bhattathiripad travelling in a boat, fed a poor and
famished widow and her children on the banks of the river Pamba. Today, one
poor person is fed before the feast as part of this tradtion. There are
other mythical stories involved in the boat race. Over the years, boat race
has been treated as a ritual and developed into an annual celebration, as
the number of boats have increased manifolds.
In the particular day, the boats are decorated with golden laces, flags and
ornamental umbrellas. The impressive are all set for a spectacular
pageantry. Apparantely the race is seemingly a competitive event but it is
more of a visual extravaganza. The boats start of the with blowing conch
shells, music and drum beating. This colorful festival occurs on
uthruttathi, or the fifth day of Onam. Before the race, the boats are oiled
with fish oil, coconut shell and carbon mixed with eggs. People take pride
of their boats represent their village and also named after it. In days of
yore, villagers sat in the boat in order of their castes and though, the
rules are less rigid, a certain pattern is still discernible. Everyone from,
the carpenter to barber, blacksmith, goldsmith as well as the agricultural
labourers have a place on the boat.
Related Guide Links
Cochin
Trivandrum
Kerala Ayurveda
Kerala Backwater
Excursion From Kerala
Periyar National Park
