Covid gives global reach to Kerala's Onam celebrations

Malayalis and art lovers across the globe can enjoy this year's popular Onam celebrations of Kerala as the state tourism department is observing the festival online, owing to the Covid-19 pandemic.

From 'Vilpattu' of South Kerala to 'Yakshagana' of Northern district of Kasargod, as many as 53 traditional and folk art forms performance of Kerala will be telecast through various mediums during the five-day virtual event that began on Thursday

The virtual Onam celebrations are also giving fresh hopes to the traditional artform performers who have been in a dire financial crisis owing to prolonged shutdown.

A virtual Onam floral carpet competition is another highlight of the event. The artforms will be telecast over Youtube and Facebook as well as various television channels.

'Nangiarkoothu' Bamboo music, Velakali, 'Arjuna Nritham', 'Garudan Thookkam', tribal dance, 'Ottanthullal', 'Pava Kathakali' , 'Tholpavakkoothu', 'Arbana Muttu', 'Vatta Mudiyattam' and 'Alamikkali'. Thus goes the list of various traditional folk arts of Kerala being performed during the Onam celebrations.

Apart from giving a global reach to the traditional art forms of Kerala, the virtual Onam week celebrations also aim at giving relief to the hundreds of performers of traditional art forms who were among the worse-hit by Covid.

Tourism Minister P A Mohamed Riyas said the state’s folk and traditional artists were in deep financial crisis owing to the pandemic. Hence the major aim of the online Onam celebrations would be a help for them. The virtual celebrations will give global reach for the state's art forms.

Kerala Tourism director V R Krishna Teja said that all the videos for the week-long telecasting were already kept ready. It started telecasting from Thursday and will be on till 23.