Fair and Festivals Tours in Kerala, The colorful mosaic of Kerala festivals and fairs is as diverse as the land, is an expression of the spirit of celebration, that is an essential part of the State. Observed with enthusiasm and gaiety, festivals are like gems, ornamenting the crown of Kerala tradition and culture. Round the year the fests keep Kerala life vibrant and interludes in the mundane affairs of life.
Every season turns up new festivals, each a true celebration of the bounties of nature. The festivals exhibits an eternal harmony of spirit. Packed with fun and excitement, festivals are occasions to clean and decorate houses, to get together with friends and relatives and to exchange gifts. New attire, dance, music and ritual, all add to their joyful rhythm. It is a time for prayer, for pageantry and processions.....a time to rejoice. The important fairs and festivals in the state are:
Onam - The National Festival of Kerala
Fairs and Festivals Kerala, Kerala's most important festival, honouring King Mahabali, a mythological king of ancient Kerala, whose period was reckoned as the golden age in the history of the state. He was the
embodiment of virtues, goodness, so was his regime which was marked by equality and harmony among people. The golden age was abruptly ended when Mahabali was unseated by Vamana, the dwarf incarnation of Vishnu. However, Vamana was lenient to accede Mahabali's request that he be permitted to visit the land and his people once a year.
The time allowed for the visit was the 10th day in the month of Chingam, ( first Malayalam month, August-September). His visit is celebrated as Onam which sync with the harvest season in Kerala. The 10-days festival is supposed to begin from the lunar asterism Atham and culminate in asterism Thiruvonam. Onam is marked by festivity. Keralites bash up the day. Flower carpet is being prepared in the front yard of every house.
Fairs and Festivals in Kerala, Special prayers are offered in temples. Delicious dinner is the USP of Onam celebration. Traditional food is served on plantain leaves. An emotional string is attached to this festival since Keralites living elsewhere in the world make it a point to reach their native place to join the gala. The State Tourism Department has arranged several programmes to tap the tourism potential of the season. A snake boat race is organized in Alappuzha Punnamada lake. State's ethnic art forms are being presented in all important towns in the state during the festival.
Thrissur Pooram
Fair and Festivals Tours in Kerala, The most spectacular spectacle in the state. This festival was introduced by Sakthan Thampuran, the Maharaja of erstwhile Kochi state. Celebrated in Medom (April-May) the festival parades the fulgent faces of Kerala culture. With every passing year Tthrissur Pooram, the temple festival, attracts large masses of devotees and spectators. Of the groups displaying their artistic prowess in the Pooram, the prominent are Paramekkavu and Thiruvambadi.
When Paremekkavu and Thiruvambadi vie each other for their best performance, the connoisseurs of festivals are blessed with the rare chance to enjoy Kerala's art and culture. These temples organise impressive, awe inspiring processions starting from Krishna temple and Devi temple. On the day before the closing of the pooram the groups enter the Vadakumnatha temple through the western gate and come out through the southern gate to parade themselves, face to face.
Fairs and Festivals in Kerala, The hours-long dazzling fire works submerge the Thrissur city in an ocean of colour. The consummate pyrotechnics exhibited by the two temple groups paint the Thrissur sky with flamboyant pictures. What unfurls in the dark sky will be a rich tapestry. The marvelous as well as magical effect of the Panchavadyam, a combination of five percussion and wind instruments, is to be felt and enjoyed.
End Tours / Pearls Service
