Kerala Festival – Onam
Kerala National Festival, onam is the most important annual event for all Malaysians. Onam is celebrated on ‘Thiruvonam’ day of the Malayalam month ‘Chingam’, to mark the visit of Mahabali (also called Maveli) to his land. All people, regardless of their religious beliefs or color differences, celebrate this festival. The Kerala national festival coincides with the Kerala harvest season. The atmosphere also seems to join in the celebration, with the blooming of a variety of flowers and the sighting of many butterflies and bird songs.
Onam Festival
Onam is a ten-day festival that begins with the day of Atham or the month of Chingam. From Atham, the courtyards of houses, clubs, offices, will be decorated with special floral decorations called Athappoo or onappookalam. Kerala schools will be closed for ten days, and children play on swings, go to collect wild flowers to do ‘athappoo’, dance, sing, visit relatives. The elderly also give their children new clothes, ornaments. It is time to reunite all the members of a family.
Kerala carnival
Onam is also Kerala’s carnival season, people are actively engaged in a variety of activities such as boat races, pulikali (dressing up as tigers or leopards on two feet), ball games, playing marbles, playing dramas and the list. of activities is endless. Women also dance, sing, etc. There will also be dance performances of Mohiniyattom, Kathakali, etc. and Kalaripayattu martial arts performance.
Onam party
The main attraction of ‘thiruvonam’ day is a special onam feast, locally called onam sadya or onasadya, which serves rice with at least 15 garnishes on banana leaves. Onasadya will be there in each and every home in Kerala. There is also a dress code for eating onasadya. The men wear white dhotis with a shirt and the women white or ivory sari and blouse with edges embroidered with golden threads, called kasavu. The children will be given a piece of yellow cloth called an onakkohdi or manjakkohdi.
Onam Shopping
The main item of purchase is the dress and clothing materials. Everyone will buy clothes for themselves and as a gift for their loved ones. Onam festival is the most important shopping season. More than 90% of the sale of handicrafts, artifacts are during this season. Electronics and textiles make about 50% of annual sales in the onam season.
The legend of Onam
The legend behind onam has deep roots in the minds of all Malaysians. The myth of Onam goes like this. Mahabali was a righteous king ‘Asura’. The land prospered and there was peace throughout the kingdom. A kingdom was even better than the heavens without theft, lies, or assault, so the sky gods became jealous of the capable king, Mahabali. Maveli got caught up in a drama well plotted by Lord Vishnu and was sent to the underworld (Patalam). Unlike his ancestors, Maveli did not do anything evil or sinful; he was allowed to visit his people once a year, that is, on the Thiruvonam day of the Chingam month.
Pronounce onam correctly
The ‘n’ in the word onam is pronounced like the n in money and honey. It rhymes with the sound of a bell.