India is the land of festivals. The beautiful amalgamation of different cultures, traditions and religions is what makes India a living paradise.
Every state and city has its own reason to celebrate at different times of the year. For Kerala, it is the Onam festival which fills the entire state with extreme enthusiasm and happiness. Celebrated every year in the month of August-September, the harvesting festival is incomplete without Pulikali.
Pulikali (Puli = Leopard/Tiger & Kali = Play in Malayalam language) is an event that has become synonymous with the festival of Onam. This folk art festival is held every year in Thrissur to entertain people during the Onam festivities.
On the fourth day of Onam celebrations (Nalaam Onam), performers painted like tigers and hunters in bright yellow, red, and black dance to the beats of instruments like Udukku and Thakil.
This year too, a spellbinding Tiger Dance procession revolving around the theme of ‘tiger hunting' was the highlight of the festival.
Here are some insights from the Pulikali Folkart Festival:
1. Artists with their bodies painted with the likeness of a tiger to perform during the 'Pulikali' or Tiger Dance in Thrissur
2. Volunteers hold a rope to keep away the crowd as Indian artists with their bodies painted with the likeness of tigers perform during the 'Pulikali' or Tiger Dance procession
3. An artist with his body painted with the likeness of a tiger dances before a tableau with a picture of tiger during the 'Pulikali' or Tiger Dance procession
4. A young artist, with his body painted with the likeness of a tiger, holds a coconut before offering the same to a Hindu deity during the 'Pulikali'
5. A young artist eats a meal as he gets his body painted with the likeness of a tiger to perform during the 'Pulikali'.
6. Men getting their bodies painted wait for the paint to dry before they perform during the 'Pulikali'
