Pallipana, the folk ritual - Documentation by INTACH

Pallippana ,the folk ritual dedicated to the Goddess is seen usually in Central Kerala including Malappuram district. As all other temple rituals in Kerala, this ritual also has its uniqueness in its own manner. Along with the ritual performances , folk songs along with dance steps are conducted in this.

INTACH, Calicut Chapter is documenting the whole ritual as part of the ICH nationwide documentation by INTACH. The event will be conducted on 16th & 17th of January 2016 at Changaramkulam in Malappuram dt of Kerala (India). To know more on this event and to participate, CLICK HERE 

INTACH, The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage  is an organisation to conserve and preserve India's natural, cultural, living, tangible and intangible heritage. ICH (Intangible Cultural Heritage) is a division of INTACH to document and safeguard some of the endangered cultural expressions that sustain today.

Here is video clipping of Pallippana. The ritual performance seen here is called Paanapidutham.

The Potters of 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. The magazine,Welcome Kerala, is featuring such traditions and folklore in a series.

Ezhumangad is one of the popular potters' villages in Kerala, situated on the banks of River Nila. Some of them are still continuing their tradition. Read more about these potters:  The Potters of Ezhumangad

Nangiarkoothu by Kalamnadalam Sindhu

Kalamandalam Sindhu will perform ‎Nangiarkoothu, the Sanskrit dance drama, ‬ on 21,22 June 2015 at Thiruvananthapuram. The dance drama will be based on the story SreeRama Charitham, a new story for nangiarkoothu written by Margi Sathi,the nangiarkoothu Guru. The program will begin at  06.00 pm at Rangasree, Balasubrahmanian Temple lane, Karamana, ‪‎Thiruvananthapuram‬, Kerala.

Sindhu will be accompanied by Kalamandalam Sajikumar, Margi Mahesh on Mizhavu, Kalamandalam Mohan on Timila and Thalam, the cymbals will be played by Margi Amrutha, Margi Visishta.

Scenes presented:
21 June - Sreeramacharitham Purappadu
22 June - Nimicharitham.

This is the first series in the serial presentation of Sreeramacharitham nangiarkoothu, which will be continued in series every month.

Photo Courtesy: Kalamandalam Sindhu.

A Painting Exhibition by Child Artists

Jalasparsam’, an exhibition of paintings by around 100 child artists from the Fine Arts Academy, Balussery, Kozhikode dt conducted at the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi Art Gallery in  Kozhikode, Kerala, India displayed excellence of the rising stars.  The participant artists were mostly students, from kindergarten to higher classes, some of them already established.

The exhibition displayed about 110 paintings, which included some award winning paintings of many acclaimed competitions. Read More ..

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