It has been a rather little-known mela, despite it being a melting pot of charged music and dance, colour and costume, drama and spirituality. Or so it was, until photographers, such as Chennai-based Achuthanand Tanjore Ravi, decided to capture it on camera. Ravi himself stumbled upon this festival when he was working on a project photo-documenting people in masquerades.
A self-taught photographer, whose work is sought after internationally thanks to his impressive photo documentaries, such as on the Mahakumbh Mela-2013 and the UNESCO supported Beyond Sight on visually-challenged people, Ravi has just completed a photo documentary of the evocative Kulasai festival that happens in the seaside village Kulasekarapattinam in Tuticorin district, just 20 km from the famous Tiruchendur Murugan temple. “The Kulasai festival astounds by its colours and music,” says Achuthanand, who has shot this photo documentary for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as part of their outreach to understand the festivals of south India.
A rather nondescript village that comes alive during the 12 days coinciding with Dussehra, when over 1.5 million pilgrims flock to the Kulasai Mutharamman temple here, this village witnesses a unique trance dance, when pilgrims dance with clay pots containing fire while in a trance, for hours on end and far into the night, swaying to the pulsating beats of thara thappattam.
This is a unique festival where people dress up in a repertoire of costumes that includes Gods, such as Kali, Yama, Hanuman and Shiva, as well as in costumes of gypsies, policemen, doctors etc. The festival evolved because people here did not have access to metal foils of these Gods, which are traditionally given as offerings into temple hundials. Or perhaps, they chose to pass up metal foils and dress themselves up instead. “I would estimate that eight to 10 lakh people converge here during the festival, and this includes about 600 troops (of 20 odd people in each troop) in costumes. People come from across South India in buses and vans, pitch tents and take part in the festivities. They come to make their wishes and requests, and return the following year in fancy costumes as a measure of gratitude,” says Achuthanand. And once the festival winds up, the village goes back to being just another nondescript fishing village in the region.
In terms of technique, Achuthanand stuck to the 50 mm and 24 mm prime lens of fixed focal length. “In general, I went by the photographic maxim of ‘the closer you go, the better is the composition,” he shares. And, he did not use a flash. In low light, Achuthanand opted for an elevated ISO for better image stabilisation.
“I plan to revisit the festival next year and get a few more portraits,” says Achuthanand, whose passion for photo documentation has led him to places far into the inner reaches of the country. Meanwhile, Madras in Motion, the photography community started with his friend Ashok Arsh is now 3,800 members strong and conducts photo walks every week.
