If you miss a beat or if your energy level dips for a split second it will be a mess. Such is the synergy required in Kolkali, one of the liveliest events of the 58th State School Arts Festival.
Viewers were holding their breath all through as the 24 teams performed expertly at the Higher Secondary-level Kolkali competition at Chaldean Syrian Higher Secondary School on Sunday. The energy level of the participants was amazing. The movements were brisk, but no one missed a step. The audience encouraged the moves with thunderous applause.
C. Haris Haji, managing committee president of Mubarak HSS, Thalassery, which has been participating in the festival for 13 years, said it was a tight competition.
“Kolkali is a passion, more than a competition item, for our school. The practice will go on thoughout the year. Students will be trained from the UP level itself,” he said. The school came first at the festival held in Thiruvananthapuram and second in the one in Kannur. Mujeeb Kadameri has been training the team for all these years.
However, Mr. Haji and his performers are not happy with this year’s grading system. “The competition has lost its sheen because of the grading system. If you maintain a certain standard you can win ‘A’ grade,” says Anas, a Kolkali participant of EMJAY VHS, Villiappilly.
