When most civic bodies treat monsoon as a season of havoc and misfortune, Koyilandy has made a difference.
For the people here, it is a time to celebrate the seasonal charm and explore the “rain possibilities” for kindling some imaginative thoughts among the children.
‘Mazha Utsavam,’ festival of rain, is under way in the town.
“We have been enjoying the Mazha Utsavam from July 7 with many creative programmes for the children from nearby schools. It includes agriculture awareness campaigns, training programme in traditional farming, and workshops for children to pen their thoughts on monsoon through poems and stories,” says municipal chairperson K. Santha.
She adds that over 24 educational institutions are part of the rain fest, which will conclude on Wednesday.
On Sunday, students from over 14 schools in and around Koyilandy gathered on the banks of the Anela river to participate in a ‘kaviyarangu’ (poets’ meet), which was opened by poet Meloor Vasudevan.
Several poets took part in the programme and shared their experience with the kids.
On Monday, competitions in painting and versification were held on the Koyilandy bus stand premises with monsoon as the theme. Artist Paul Kallanode opened the programme and explained to the kids the possibilities of portraying the different faces of monsoon on canvas.
Ms. Santha said the culmination of the festival would be spiced up with folksongs, ‘nadan’ food fest, and various other cultural programmes.
She said ‘Kaliyan utsavam, a reminder of the rural life of yesteryear Malabar, would be the main event of the day.
