The heavens opened up around 3 O’clock on Sunday afternoon.
These past four days had been bright and humid, but the weather changed dramatically. Not before the competitions at the 60th State School Arts Festival were over, however.
It was as if Nature did not want to play spoilsport with what had been a festival celebrated spiritedly by the people of Kanhangad and other parts of Kasaragod district. Not since the Malappuram festival of 2013 has a town responded as enthusiastically.
The rain had become pretty heavy by the time the concluding ceremony opened at the main venue of Aingoth, but the crowd of over 8,000 stayed back to witness champions Palakkad lifting the Gold Cup.
They cheered loudly whenever the speakers at the function spoke about the role they played in making the festival a success.
The people of Kanhangad truly deserved those words of praise.
This region has a rich tradition of culture and literature. And its people ensured that this incredibly unique arts festival would be remembered for a long time by the tens of thousands of spectators who came here from all over the State and beyond.
In return, the cream of Kerala’s artistic talent came up with several outstanding shows — be it in dance, music, or drama in varied languages and styles — and gave the art-loving public here plenty to cherish.
Several events, such as Malayalam Drama, Light Music, Classical and Folk Dances, and Malayalam Drama, featured many remarkably skilled young performers, about whom we are likely to hear in the future. A contest like Light Music (girls) or Ghazal alone showed how much talent Kerala possesses.
Inadequate space
The organisers worked hard and enthusiastically, too. But the venues were bit of an issue. While the biggest complaint was the relatively long distances between the stages, the size of the several venues was a problem, too.
Only the main venue could accommodate enough spectators.
The Group Dance event in HSS category — the most popular item over the last several years at the festival — deserved a much larger venue than the one at the Durga HSS. Ironically, the huge ground on the same compound was used as parking space.
Likewise, the Town Hall never was going to be enough for girls’ Kuchipudi, an event that is eye-catching and features some talented performers of late.
Still, each person involved with the conduct of the festival has reasons to feel proud.
Even to accept the challenge of hosting an event of this magnitude — more than 11,000 students and as many as 239 events — in a small town like Kanhangad needs conviction and confidence.
Kollam will host the next edition of the State School Arts Festival. And it will have to work hard to take it this close to people.
