Confluence of colours, rhythm at Thrissur Pooram
THRISSUR: Nearly hundred elephants, thousand-odd percussion artists and a sea of crowd turned the Thekkinkad Maidan into a confluence of colours and rhythm as Thrissur Pooram returned in all its grandeur after being restricted to rituals in the last two years due to Covid.
The sight of the caparisoned elephants gave the festival a majestic look, with the Vadakkumnathan temple providing a grand setting. After Madhathil Varavu and Elanjithara Melam, the excitement reached a crescendo during Kudamattam when parasols of various hues were displayed atop 15 caparisoned elephants each of Paramekkavu and Thiruvambady devaswoms. Paramekkavu Padmanabhan carried the idol of Paramekkavu Devi while Thiruvambady Chandrasekharan led the Thiruvambady faction.
The rain, which started at 6.45pm, could not dampen the spirit of the crowd as they cheered on when each umbrella went up in the air. The ones decorated with LED lights drew the utmost cheer. “Both devaswoms had made around 47 sets of parasols including five special ones. Doctors had checked the elephants on Monday and the most calm ones were selected by both the devaswoms to avoid any untoward incident,” said P V Subramanian, coordinator of small poorams.
The maidan, also known as the Swaraj Round, came alive in the morning when small poorams started arriving. At 11.30am, the deities of Thiruvambady, escorted by 25 caparisoned elephants, started for Brahmaswam madom for the Madhathil Varavu ritual.
Festival of fests
1798 The year in which Thrissur Pooram began, through a royal decree of then Raja Rama Varma, popularly known as Shakthan Thampuran, a powerful ruler of the erstwhile princely state of Cochin
The edict made Paramekkavu and Thiruvambady as the main sponsors of the festivities
Besides the main pooram by the above 2 devaswoms, small poorams from nearby temples also took part. Fireworks was put off due to rain