The story behind: Theyyam Makeup

Welcome to the ‘Mystic North Kerala’…

We are in the middle of yet another Theyyam season, vibrant days and nights… filled to the brim with drum beats and saturated colors.

Sleepless nights are well compensated by the divine dance of the Theyyams …

Theyyam make up is always interesting as it’s very much part of the transformation process, in which meager mortals become immortals, though, for a few hours.

Let me share a few images which I captured last week, while organizing a festival tour for our wonderful guests from Germany, Hans and Lilo.

 

Weekly Photo Challenge: Unlikely, Laksham Deepam Samarppanam

It truly was a Herculean attempt, ‘try to lit one hundred thousand lamps at the same time’.

Quite Unlikely to achieve the objective in open air, but, they almost did it through an incredible collective effort driven by faith…

I was lucky to get an off day and spent enough time to capture the whole action.

Unlikely

 

Wordless Wednesday: Stories Unwritten…

WPC: Mirror, The Hidden Personality

Let me take this week’s theme “Mirror” literally…

I shot this photo some 7-8 years back at a really interesting place in South India, called Rameshwaram…

The place is known for it’s unique landscape, historic and mythological significance.

Being a small island there is no shortage of seashells here and the local community makes a living by selling craft items made out of it.

But the place has a tragic past, once a flourishing tourist and pilgrimage town, it was razed to ground by a devastating cyclone and the associated tidal waves in 1964. Now, no one lives here …

Mirror

Wordless Wednesday: Devotion

Wordless Wednesday: Off Target

Weekly Photo Challenge: Walls, Tanjavur Wall Painting

The Big Temple of Tanjavur is a world of it’s own…

We have to use superlative degree for anything that’s associated with this architectural marvel which turned 1000 years old in 2010.

I am restricting this post to something special, on the inside ‘Walls’ of this temple complex, the world renowned Tanjavur painting…

Wall
 

Weekly Photo Challenge: Contrast

As a second entry to this week’s photo challenge: contrast let me share an image of a brass oil lamp lit during a traditional temple festival in Kerala, India.

Sun was brightly shining but, this lamp has to be lit to drive away all the powers of evil or ignorance during the theyyam performance.

You can have a look at my first entry for Contrast, an image from the hill top temple of Devarayanadurga here, photo-challenge-contrast-play-of-light-and-shadows

Wordless Wednesday: Predator and Prey

Weekly Photo Challenge: Contrast, Play of light and shadows…

Let me share an image which, I felt, fits this week’s theme literally.

This shot was taken from Devarayanadurga, a hillock near Bangalore.

The place is really special for the beautiful temple on top of the hill and the great panoramic view of the valley.