E-Paper
Thrissur Pooram back with splendour after two-year gap
Billed as the mother of all festivals, Pooram was cancelled in the past two years due to Covid-19 pandemic.
After two-year break Thrissur Pooram, the biggest cultural festival of Kerala, returned to its glory on Tuesday amid musical ensemble and majestic sight of caparisoned elephants lined up in the midst of thousands of excited music lovers and devotees.
Billed as the mother of all festivals, Pooram was cancelled in the past two years due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Preparations for the grand event this time showed as if the temple town was compensating for two lost years. The seven-day festival which started last Wednesday reached its crescendo on the final day on Tuesday with percussion feast, “kuda mattaom” (competitive display of colourful ornate pasarols sitting on decorated elephants) and fireworks later in the night.
The festival is held annually at Vadakkunnathan (Lord Shiva) temple situated at the heart of Thrissur, which is also known as the cultural capital of the state.
Pooram and backwaters of the state are two permanent fixtures on Kerala’s billboards. The percussion event started with panchavadyam, an orchestra with five traditional instruments followed by Ilanjithara melam and Pandi melam, ensemble of traditional music instruments.
Another notable feature of the Pooram is its secular nature as all religious communities participate in the festivity. Usually pandal (tent) and other decoration works are carried out by Muslims and materials for umbrella for “kuda mattaom” are offered by churches of the areas. The largest cultural pageant of the state, Pooram was started in late 18th century by erstwhile King of Kochi Sakthan Thamburan.
In the morning, one of the 30 elephants participating in the Pooram named Dharman ran amok but later the jumbo calmed down without any damage. Similarly, late RSS ideologue VD Savarkar’s image in Pooram umbrellas triggered a protest. His photo came in the category of freedom fighters and renaissance leaders of the country. Following loud protests from the Congress and CPI(M), his image was removed.
