THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The week-long Onam celebrations organised by the state tourism department will draw to a close on Saturday evening with a colourful cultural pageantry, followed by a star-studded valedictory ceremony at the Nishagandhi auditorium in Thiruvananthapuram. The mega cultural festival kicked off on August 27.
Tourism Minister P A Mohamed Riyas will inaugurate the valedictory function at 7 pm. Minister for General Education V Sivankutty, Minister for Health Veena George, Minister for Food and Civil Supplies G R Anil and Transport Minister Antony Raju will be present. Actors Shane Nigam, Neeraj Madhav, and Antony Varghese (Pepe) will also attend the closing ceremony, where a performance by Harisankar’s music band will be the highlight. Prizes to the winners of various competitions held as part of the Onam celebrations will be presented.
Governor Arif Mohammed Khan will flag off the cultural pageantry at 5pm at Manaveeyam Veedhi, marking the finale of the festival. Speaker A N Shamseer will be the chief guest. Minister Riyas will hand over the traditional wind instrument ‘Kombu’ to the main artiste, thereby setting the rhythm for the spectacle to wend its way along the thoroughfares of the city.
Riyas said the show, organised on a grand scale by spending about Rs 34 lakh, will offer vivid glimpses into the diverse artistic and cultural heritage of the state and the country. The pageantry has been organised by strictly adhering to the green protocol.
Around 3,000 artistes will be participating in the pageantry, featuring 60 floats that reflect the rich cultural fabric of the state and the country. As many as 10 art forms from other states will be presented. Nearly 180 artistes fromdifferent states will join the show. Display of traditional musical ensembles and art forms connecting the festival and cultural programmes across the state will be a highlight of the pageantry. The show will wind up at East Fort after moving through the heart of the city from Vellayambalam.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the celebrations on Sunday, setting the stage for a variety of classical, folk, ethnic, and popular art forms to come alive in multiple venues in the capital.