The four-day carnival ‘Neethal’, showcasing the uniqueness, culture and folk arts of Tamil Nadu, got off to a colorful start here on Thursday.
More than 300 artists from across Tamil Nadu will perform traditional Tamil music, dance, forgotten arts and showcase distinctive lifestyles and traditional food at the carnival, an initiative of Thoothukudi MP Kanimozhi.
“Tamil society has a reputation for appreciating all kinds of arts and folk arts that flourish in this environment. Since Thoothukudi is on the seashore, we named a distinctive landscape described in the ancient Tamil work ‘Tholkaappiyam’ as ‘Neethal’ to provide a platform to the younger generation to showcase the rich art forms of Tamil Nadu.”
‘Neethal’ strives to empower and encourage the lives of rural artists and rural people. “This carnival combines elements of our traditional music, art, culture and food to create a homey take on the theme. Our mission is to preserve and preserve these traditional forms of art in their original form and content, while effectively passing on the new story-telling to the younger generation through modern technology,” she said.
The MP said that the rural art forms of Tamil Nadu, which were nurturing humanism, culture, a unique society and rural lifestyle without any caste and religious identities, should be celebrated by everyone as it was the need of the hour.
‘Neethal’ is also an attempt to introduce the young generation to the rich traditional food of Tamil Nadu. “Combining both our rural folk arts and our traditional food, we have taken a sincere endeavor to present ‘Neethal’ to the visitors coming from different parts of the state to mesmerize and satisfy their taste buds with traditional food without any ill effects. have tried. You can taste authentic food from different cuisines,” she said.
Apart from art and food, several books related to the theme of the event were showcased at the festival. Low cost rural handicrafts made by rural artisans and women of self-help groups were for sale.
“We are organizing live workshops related to handicrafts by expert artisans and craftsmen like ‘Pugar’, an embroidered form of Toda women, in these stalls. These products are authentic, affordable and attractive,” said Ms. Kanimozhi.
The first evening saw performances of ‘Naiyandi Melam’, ‘Karagam’, ‘Kavadi’, ‘Sufi Songs’, ‘Parai’, ‘Jikkattam’ and ‘Puliyattam’ and the last program of the day was a concert by Chinnaponnu Kumar.
On Friday, concerts by troupes ‘Kummi’, ‘Kolattam’, ‘Kalari’, ‘Naiyandi Melam’, ‘Karagam’, ‘Devarattam’, ‘Jimbala Melam’, ‘Poikal Kuthirai’, ‘Periya Melam’ and ‘Anthinai’ . Will mesmerize the audience. The highlight of the day will be the performance of ‘Thoothukudi Choir’ at 6.40 pm