Kuilapalayam, a non-descript village near Auroville, came alive to the sound of colourfully-decorated bulls sprinting through its streets as part of the Manja Virattu celebrations.
Foreign tourists present at the venue got a taste of a tradition of rural Tamil Nadu.
Manja Virattu, hosted by this hamlet for over six decades, served as a grand finale for the three-day Pongal festivities for the villagers. The event was a huge tourist draw. Unlike Jallikattu, Manja Virattu does not involve taming the bulls.
It all started with a puja at the local Pidariamman temple. The deity was taken in a procession near the temple, where bulls, cows and calves from surrounding 22 villages decorated with balloons, bananas and posters of actors, were lined up for the race. The bulls were let loose. Egged on by a boisterous crowd, the bulls sprinted through the streets of the village. People, including a large number of foreigners, cheered the animals on both sides of the route. Some were seen capturing the moments in their camera.
‘Fantastic, unbelievable’
For Anna and her husband Larz from Sweden, it was an off-beat cultural event with the cows beautifully decorated.
“We took our grandchildren from Moscow on the way to India. This is our first visit to Auroville. The cattle races are fantastic and unbelievable. There is so much to see and we will be back next year,” Ms. Anna said.
Dr. Justin Lawson and Sarra from Deakin University in Australia termed the event as full of fun. “We have been here for the past three days and it is an amazing experience. We have never seen anything like this before. The cows were beautifully decorated and break into a run at the bursting of crackers. There is so much of colour, vibrancy and it is an amazing thing to see,” Mr. Lawson said. “Normally, hundreds of bulls and cows would take part in the event. But the the number of cattle has dwindled over the last few years due to decline in farming activities and now even calves take part in the event,” said a resident.
