Lok Sabha elections 2024: Festival transcending faith and ideology

Actor and BJP candidate from Thrissur Suresh Gopi interacts with people at a temple on the occasion of Pooram. Pics/Atul Kamble

The march of bejeweled tuskers beats of percussionists and a unique experience. When faith and ideologies make way for this grand spectacle at the Thrissur Pooram festival, politicians also try to blend in. The fest, biggest of its kind in Asia, commenced on Friday and will conclude on Saturday.

The 36-hour festival held at the Thekkinkadu Maidan is secular, and brings together people from all religions and communities in the festivities. Thrissur constituency has almost 47 percent of its population comprising Christians and Muslims.

Candidates join Pooram

Thrissur BJP candidate Suresh Gopi, Congress candidate K Murleedharan, and CPM candidate Sunil Kumar, were at the Pooram, since early morning. Shivprasad K B, Thrissur, district committee member of BJP said, "Gopi visited the Thiruvambadi Sri Krishna Temple at 5.30 a.m and made offerings to the divine. He also made arrangements for providing kanji (rice porridge) freely. Besides, 2,000 water bottles were distributed for on duty policemen, through his late daughter Laxmi Suresh Gopi Trust. He then proceeded to the BJP party office in Thrissur to attend an internal organisational meeting."

Bejeweled tuskers march during the Pooram festival

"Congress candidate K Murleedharan and his supporters, were at Pooram since morning, and will be there till late in the night," said his party member Abilash. And so was Sunil Kumar of CPM, who is a popular candidate.

Interestingly, local residents in Thrissur, say, "We have three good candidates to contest from this constituency, only on June 4, we will come to know, the real winner and the candidate who makes it to the Parliament in Delhi, until then for every supporter, their candidate is the pre-decided winner"

Study on Pooram elephants and mahouts

Gopala Krishnan, 68, who is originally from Vadakkencherry, Palakkad, had come all the way from Chennai to take part in Thrissur Pooram. Krishnan, who used to work in Mumbai's Indira Dock, used to stay in Chembur, and post retirement, he shifted to Chennai.

Krishnan has made extensive study about Pooram elephants and the mahouts, across Kerala and even documented the same in a book format. His focus of work was on the elephants and mahouts from the pages of history.

Tuskers and their mahouts at the Pooram festival of Thrissur

Pooram festival

According to Gopala Krishnan, "The Thrissur Pooram is a resplendent festival celebrated with a grand display of bejeweled caparisoned elephants, dazzling parasols, and the sounds and beats of the percussion music. It is a magnificent spectacle merging the spiritual and cultural essence of Kerala. It is celebrated in the Malayalam month of medam (April-May)".

Pooram History

"The festival was the idea of then Maharajah of Cochin Santhana Thampuran (1790-1805). The festival has its genesis when incessant rains led to temples in Thrissur unable to participate in the Arattupuzha Pooram - a one-day festival," he said.

"The temple groups complained to Thampuran who, it is said, decided to challenge the ban by starting Thrissur Pooram on the Pooram day in the month of May in the same year. He invited temples with their deities to Thrissur to pay obeisance to Vadakkunnathan/Shiva - the presiding deity of the Vadakkunnathan temple. Deities of 10 temples participate in the Pooram festivities, viz: Thiruvambadi, Paramekkavu, Naithalakkavu, Ayyanthole, Karumukku, Lalur, Choorakkattukara, Chembukkavu, Kanimangalam and Panamukkumpally," recalled Gopala Krishnan.

"Be it left, right, or even left or right of centre political parties, there is no discordant tone during the Pooram festivities. It is the state's festival - religion and political affiliations don't have a bearing on the festivities," he said.

But these party differences only emerge and are vibrant in the campaign. Today and tomorrow it is about Thrissur Pooram and its main characters of elephants, percussion instruments and firecrackers. And the grand sadya (traditional feast) given to everyone who wants to partake of it on the temple grounds," said a local resident.

Kids excited

"There are so many of them (elephants)here, I love looking at them," said Antony Tom, five-year-old, who was brought to the temporary elephant enclosure, made in an open ground, on the back side of Paramekkavu Bagavathi temple.

My son loves Elephants and spends most of the time watching the National Geographic channel. He is able to differentiate Asian elephants with African Bush Elephants. As it won't be possible to get him (Antony) on Pooram day (April 19), to watch the elephants from the close proximity, due to large public turn over, we decided to get him to the elephant enclosure, a day before (April 18-Thursday) the Pooram, said his father Tom Antony, a resident of Guruvayur with his son Antony (5), who is fond of Elephants.

For ten-year-old Aiyana, 10, a class five student, who was accompanied by her grandmother Seeta Ravindran, said, "The elephants look beautiful, they resemble lord Ganesha and I am fond of them," she said.

Seeta said, "On day of Pooram, the entire entry and exit roads are closed for vehicular moments, as the public participates in the function, and she was insisting on seeing the elephants, so I got her to the elephant enclosure."

Mahout speak

On Thursday, Arun M A, 31, from Mullasery, Trisshur and Vipin, from Kottayam both mahouts, were busy giving bath to the elephant named Ganapati in a water tank.

When asked about the age of Ganapati, Vipin, the senior mahout, said, "Ganpati is 40-year- old and he is owned by a person named Bharat from Punkunnam, Thrissur district. Ganpati is very calm and is easy to handle and has been a regular participant in the Pooram," the mahout said. When asked the time that they need to give a bath to Ganapati, they said, "Ganpati likes to be in water for a long time. We usually take two hours to give him a proper bath."