Marking the conclusion of the week-long Onam celebrations in the city, a grand cultural procession will be taken out from Kowdiar to East Fort on Friday. As many as 3,000 artistes, 75 floats and 68 art forms will offer a colourful lustre to the pageantry. Governor Nikhil Kumar will be the chief guest on the occasion.
Caparisoned elephants, ‘panchavadyam’ and ‘onapottan/onathar theyyam’ will lead the procession this time. Noted theyyam artiste Chandu Panikkarasan is preparing the ‘onapottan’.
A mix of the popular traditional art forms of the northern and southern parts of Kerala will be the highlight, said Tourism Minister A P Anilkumar in a press meet here. Representing other states in India, artists will perform yakshagana, Gujarati dance, Manipuri dance and Bhangra.
‘Chendamelam’ will be presented by a troupe of 101 artists and 24 artistes will handle ‘alavattom’ and ‘venchamaram.’ More than 150 men and women in typical Kerala attire bearing ‘olakkuda’ and ‘muthukuda’ would be accompanied by 31 artistes carrying ‘kombu’ and ‘thayambaka.’ Almost all traditional art forms of Kerala are set to appear in the pageantry. ‘Velakali’, ‘neyyandi melam’, ‘shingari melam’, ‘panchari melam’, ‘thakil’, ‘nadaswaram’, ‘maddalam’, ‘udukku’, ‘kummattikottu’, ‘veeku chenda’, ‘kuzhal’, ‘mayooranritham’, ‘parunthattam’, ‘nilakkavadi’, ‘pookavadi’, ‘chindakkavadi’, ‘poothan thira’, ‘kali-darikan’, ‘vattamudi theyyam’, fusion drums, kathakali, mohiniyattam, ottanthullal, kalaripayattu, chakyarkoothu, ‘duff muttu’, ‘nangyarkoothu’, ‘oppana’, ‘margamkali’, ‘parichamuttu kali’, ‘thiruvathira’, ‘chavittu natakam’ and ‘padayani’ will be part of the procession.
Almost 75 floats of central government/ state government/ local self-government/ district/ primary co-operative institutions, nationalised banks and private institutions will be presented. Special awards will be given away by the Tourism Department for the winners in the first and second places among the floats and cultural programmes at the mega show at Central Stadium at 10 pm on the day.
Performances by students, NCC cadets, Scouts and Guides and police will also be there.
Health Minister V S Sivakumar, chairman of the procession committee Varkala Kahar MLA and general convenor K R Jyothilal were also present at the press meet.