The Mural City - Kottayam

Murals have been a traditional form of expression of art primarily in temples of Kerala. The origin of murals in Kerala can be traced to around 08th century in the Thirunandikkara cave temple and Thiruvanchikulam temple.

In 2013, The Kerala Lalithakala Akademi, Kottayam, Kerala organized a two week long “International Mural Painters' Camp” was concluded by the Chief Minister of Kerala, who declared Kottayam the 'Mural City'. Read More on the mural camp and mural city ...

Surviving Traditions from the Banks of River Nila

Bharathapuzha, poetically known as River Nila has played a key role in the development of civilisation and history of Kerala. There are many folk communities, traditional artists and artisans who have been living on the shores of River Nila since centuries. Some of them are still practicing their skills and crafts. From this issue onwards Welcome Kerala will feature such traditions and folklore in a series. The grass mats of Killimangalam featured here is one such tradition which requires immediate attention.     READ MORE  >> >

Sargolsav 2014 at Vadakara

National art and craft fair Sargolsav 2014 at Sargalaya Arts & Crafts village from 20 to 30 Dec 2014.

Sargaalaya Arts & Crafts village at  Iringal, Vadakara in Kozhikode Dt  in Kerala is an initiative by the Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala. The Village is a craft cluster that was conceptualized as a tourism destination, developed and implemented on the Responsible Tourism model. 

It is an initiative to put Kerala's traditional handicrafts on the tourism trail.

Sargaalaya focuses on creating a tourist destination, centered on hands-on interaction between tourists and artisans, who create, display and market their crafts on site. The strategy being, to make Kerala's traditional crafts an integral part of the tourism experience while also providing sustainable development for the artisans economically.

The craft village is set up on 20 acres of land with 27 cottages on the banks of the Moorad River, just 200 meters off Kozhikode – Kannur National Highway near Vadakara.  Apart from showcasing crafts & craftsmen from across Kerala, Sargaalaya has a Crafts Design & Technology development centre 

that provides training for craftsmen on the latest techniques of production & encourages innovation in the traditional system.

Courtesy: Kerala Tourism

Third Annual Celebrations of Satkalapeedom at Payyannur

The third annual celebrations of Satkalapeedom at Payyannur, Kannur, Kerala will be conducted from 03 to 07 Dec 2014 at Ayodhya Auditorium, Kannur. The five day celebration, inaugurated by Denedra Kasyap, DIG, Kannur has included cultural events - music, kathakali, drama etc. The event starting from 06.30 pm at 03^rd Dec, will present Satkalaratna Award to Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasya, Indian classical flautist.  Musical programme U Rajesh (Mandolin) and team is held on the same day. 

The schedule:

03 12 2014 (Wednesday)

06. 30 pm: Inaugural function and Award presentation followed by, musical program. The artist,

Mandolin: U Rajesh

Thavil : Karunamoorthy

Tabla : Ojas Adhiya

Guajira : Sundarkumar

04 12 2014 (Thursday)

06. 30 pm: Drama titled ‘Pranaya Sagaram’ by KPAC. (Based on the novel Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy)

05 12 2014 (Friday)

06.30 pm: Bhajananandam, Bhajans by Anandabhavanam, Pothamkandam.

06 12 2014 (Saturday)

06.30 pm: Tholppavakoothu, shadow puppetry by Ramachandra Pulavar & team.

07 12 2014 (Sunday)

06.30 pm: Kathakali , Story – Santhanagopalam

Participating artists and characters are Padmashree Kalamandalam Gopi as Arjunan, Margi Vijayakumar as Brahmanan, Kalamandalam Ravikumar as Sreekrishnan, Kalamandalam Jishnu Ravi as Bhramanasthree, the lady character. The accompanying team include Pathiyoor Sankarankutty and Kalamandalam Babu Namboothiri (Song), Kalamandalam Unnikrishnan (Chenda), Kottakkal Ravi (Maddalam) and Kalamandalam Sivaraman (Chutti).

The entry to the program is restricted. For details mail to satkalapeetam@gmail.com

Welcome Kerala, magazine on Nature, Culture, Art and Heritage of Kerala

Latest issue of Welcome Kerala, the magazine focusing the  Nature, Culture, Art & Heritage of Kerala, India is available now.

The highlights ,
- > 100 plus art & ritual events held in Kerala during December 2014.
- > A new series featuring the tradition and folklore from the banks of River Nila or Bharathapuzha, the river that shaped the civilization of Kerala.

Grab your copies....
For details mail to welcomekeralamagazine@gmail.com or contact +91 93881 31777

Cultural Festival by Kochi Muziris Biennale 2014

Cultural Festival, thefour- months long cultural programmes by Kochi Muziris Biennale was announced last day. For details: Cultural Festival . 

Gajaangan, A Creation for the Gifted Children

Gajaangan, a classical dance drama directed by Natyasasthra Guru Dr C P Unnikrishna Menon will be performed on 29 Nov 2014 at Ernakulam, Kerala. The concept and the story of the play is done by Artist Nandan Pillai. The event will be staged at Fine Arts Hall, Ernakulam, Kerala from 06.30 pm.

The Team

Concept & Story - Artist Nandan Pillai
Direction, Lyrics : Natyasasthra Guru Dr C P Unnikrishna Menon
Music: T S Radhakrishnaji
Choreography : Pattathil Dhanya Menon
Costumes & Ornaments : Deepa Pattathil

Artists  & Character : Kottakkal Nandakumaran Nair (Soothradharan), Dr C P unnikrishna Menon (Gajaangan), Pattathil Dhanya Menon (Parvathi), Saritha Kalakshethra (Ganapathi)
Silpa, Meera, Deekshitha, Suvarna, Sreya, Nanditha, Irene, Nandana