Onam in Attingal

There were two kinds of Onams in Attingal yesterday, the day of Thiruvonam. The one in the town was predictable and boring, while that in the nearby villages was delightful and memorable.

People in Attingal town celebrated Onam with all the modern conventions: that is, having a heavy lunch, watching movies or other programs on television, and entertaining the guests and relatives who cared enough to turn up. There were some quick fix Atha pookkalams too in front of some houses. Men with a penchant for booze had a great day, with nobody scolding them or staring at them even if they were in an inebriated state.

But villages near Attingal town celebrated the festival with more gusto and mirth. Though there has not been in any harvest in the paddy fields for quite a while, villagers still celebrate the harvest festival in the traditional manner. Young men and children created some exquisite Athapookkalams. Here are some sample photos of Onam pookkalams.












And then there was this wonderful Atthham in front of the house of an elderly lady, who lives there with her deaf and dumb son.  Local kids gathered together and made a good looking Atham in front of her house.  In this photo, she is seen in the background.





Morning and Afternoon

Onam in the villages did not confine to making the floral designs alone. There were day-long programs and festivities. Various “arts and sports clubs” conducted a number of programs, ranging from the usual running races, karandiyil narangayum kondottam (or spoon and lemon race, which is a running race where people run with keeping a spoon with a lemon in their mouths), kudamadi (in which the participant, blind-fold, has to smash the pot with a stick), and musical chairs to other less physical competitions such as quiz competition, recitation, and drawing. The participation and crowd support too were good. We witnessed some spirited and exciting running races.


These programs lasted till the afternoon. Then people dispersed to have their lunch. It was typical Kerala seven-course meal with paysams. Onam in these parts is still a three-day affair. For a typical family, they celebrate the first day (the day of Thiruvonam) in their own house. The second and third days (Avittam and Chathayam days) belong to husband’s and wife’s ancestral homes, respectively. Relationships are not as healthy today as they once were. But still a majority of people forget all these to accommodate the whole extended family in their onam celebrations.

Evening

There were more exciting stuff in the evening. We had been eagerly looking forward to Mulayil Kayattam (climbing the bamboo pole competition). But the surprise package was a unique pillow fighting competition in a pond. The venue was a temple pond near what once was a paddy field.





Water in the pond was neither clean nor smelling good. But the boys did not mind it all. They fought their heart out. The fighting led to some funny and hilarious moments. There were occasional chaos and cacophony from the organizers, as is evident from the videos of the competition posted here.












The next item was the much awaited Mulayilkayattam. The bamboo pole was rather short, by the usual standards. But the combination of egg and grease still proved more slippery than usual. It too witnessed a neck and neck competition. In the end, the local favorite won the contest.













It became dark when the competition reached its climactic stage. But the crowd, including women and children stayed on till the end. We have some videos of the event as well.











By the end of the day, both our stomach and heart were filled. Still, there was space for evening snacks and dinner. Snacks included the usual suspects, Unniyappam, achappam, murukku, and pakka vada – not a dietician’s dream, but certainly crunchy; particularly good when watching boring TV programs or slapstick comedies. Dinner was an abridged version of the lunch. Our tummies were not prepared for the full course meal anyway.

Comments

bird droppings said…
That was a wonderful account of the happenings. A fine evidence that onam is still in streets and not just confined to television
Pleasure to know the joys of rural life are not dead anymore. One fears that in Kerala where you don't really know where the city ends and the village starts.
Anonymous said…
നന്നായി.,...!