MYSURU: With the Chamarajanagar region reeling under acute water scarcity in this scorching summer, villagers have started resorting to the age-old ritual of frog puja, hoping to bring in rain.
At Kempayyanatti village in Hanur taluk of Chamarajanagar district, villagers – especially children – are made to perform the traditional frog puja, a ritual rooted in folklore and belief in the region.
As part of the ritual, young children carried frogs inside a basket decorated with neem leaves on their heads, and walked through the village in a procession, singing traditional rain-invoking songs like “Baa Baa Maleraya”.
The summer has been particularly harsh this year in this region, leaving ponds and lakes parched, while cattle struggle for both water and fodder. With no significant rainfall in the nearby regions, dried-up tanks and lakes pushed villagers to seek solutions beyond conventional means.
The scene evoked emotional responses from villagers, who gathered outside their homes to pour water over the children’s heads as a gesture of blessing and participation in the ritual.
This practice has deep cultural roots, especially in the Mandya and Chamarajanagar regions. In many villages here, frog marriages or worships are performed during drought, based on the belief that such acts please the rain gods and bring showers.
After the procession, the children release the frogs safely back into their natural habitat, expressing hope that rain would soon follow.
