At
Aranmula on the Pamba River in the Kuttanad region,
at Papiyad near Quilon, at Thayathangadi near
Kottayam, the water carnivals and snake boat races
herald the week of the great harvest festival
of Onam. It is Kerala's most important celebration
and in scores of villages spread across central
Kerala, competitive races featuring the smaller
churulans, oadis, and irrutukuthies provide expression
to the spirit of an intrepid, athletic people,
born and bread near water.
The Nehru Trophy Boat Race
is one of those events, which the people of
Kerala look forward to with excitement. Thousands
of Keralites - men, women and children - throng
the watersides of Alappuzha to witness the spectacle.
Pavilions are set up for spectators on the banks
and in the middle of the Punnamada Lake - the
venue of the race.
The Champakulam Moolam Boat Race
is the oldest and most popular snake boat race
in Kerala, and is closely connected to the Sree
Krishna Temple at Ambalappuzha. The race is
held on the Champakulam Lake on the moolam day
of the Malayalam month Midhunam, the day of
the installation of the deity at the temple.
For both the spectators and the boat crews
of the snake boat races during the boat festivals
of Kerala, the finishing moment of the boat
race in Kerala is supreme. The snake boats,
their pennants whipped by the wind, cut a shimmering
swathe through. Kerala boat races are a must-see
for tourists on holiday in Kerala.
