In our look at the People of Madurai, we timed our visit for their havest festival, Pongal. Meanwhile, in the neighbouring state, Keralans have their own harvest festival called Onam. It lasts two weeks, and although it is a period of rest and reflection, there is a lot of activity leading up to it.
Captured here are people at work and hanging out around Kochi (Cochin) during this period.
Much of the celebration revolves around food, so you can expect to see the markets packed. I wanted to start with the image above because, shortly after taking it, I learned that this poor woman was knocked over and killed by a bus (buses were, in my opinion, one of the biggest hazards in Kerala). I don’t remember her name, but everyone knew her.
I visited the various fruit and veg markets frequently during our three year stay in Ernakulam, but my favourite was the one just off Basin Road. It’s a hive of activity, acting as a central hub for wholesale food delivery.
The wholesale depots are not exclusively for commercial trade, however. In between the large sacks of onions and gourds are individual vendors selling their goods to the public.
Despite the preparations for Onum, life goes on for most residents.
First published 3rd October 2010
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Oh, we are letter writing this week…and yes, you guessed it you and Liz are the intended recipients. We have to do informal and formal letters so some may begin ‘YO, Jamie and Liz’ and continue in that style, while others ‘ Dear Mr Furlong….’ I hope you don’t mind us using you as our purpose for writing but it’s better if it’s ‘real’…..Millie may even receive some too!!!
Hmmm…I also heard that some tend to want to deny it is still prevalent.
Oh dear…..trilogy and art!!
Don’t worry, Nance, I knew what you were talking about!
The caste system is still very much in play, despite some arguing to the contrary. The most obvious evidence of it is watching modern Bollywood films: the beautiful heroes and heroins are all pale-skinned. Many, though not all, of the rich ‘well-to-do’ Indians are from the upper castes. This is just a cursory observation, however, and not something I have investigated fully. I’m not entrenched enough into the social culture to fully understand the caste system’s nuances so it would be unfair of me to make sweeping conclusions, but the Bollywood observation is quite an obvious example.
Fantastic photos. I sometimes do a topic based on a trligy called The Wheel of Surya which begins and ends in a village in India….and yes, we therefore base all our work on the country. I think there may be yet more of your work shown in my classroom. Love the Rangoli atr on the doorstep.
My brother and his wife spent some time in India on their epic trip. He said he found the caste system was still very evident. Do you find this to be true?
Very good, reminds me of Aflecks Palace in Manchester.