Kerala - Kozhikode   

Embracing rain, the Malabar way

Biju Govind

RAINING IMAGES: A slice of the monsoon life.

Kozhikode: Monsoon has an irresistible charm. Its spell has beguiled poets, writers, climatologists, journalists and lensmen alike. Writers like Anita Nair have romantically described the rain dripping down the eaves of her ancestral home. Journalist Alexander Frater has chased the monsoon to track its journey from the Kanyakumari coast to the Himalayas. Photographer Victor George gave his life while attempting to capture the fury of nature.

But, does monsoon have a regional peculiarity? Is there another kind of rain in Malabar? Weathermen may or may not debate on this aspect. But they cannot ignore the photographs taken by photojournalist N.P. Jayan, which touch upon the lives of ordinary people during the monsoon in North Kerala. Thirty-five pictures captured from various places in Kasaragod, Kannur, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Malappuram and Palakkad districts are on display at the Sterling Rendezvous de Art on Railway Station Link Road in Kozhikode city.

The week-long exhibition of photographs, which began on Sunday, explores the rationality of monsoon in the life of Malabarites. Minister for Forest Benoy Viswom inaugurated the expo titled `Malabar Monsoon- Rainbow.' The exhibition is a visual treat to those trying to decode the imagery of monsoon in North Kerala. Each frame is a symbiotic representation in a particular region. Some of these pictures have been published in newspapers, says Jayan, a photographer currently based in Bangalore.

The photographs are a slice of life of the people, art and culture, history, rivers, rains, ocean, nature and wildlife of North Kerala. Greenery is the theme in a picture of a woman with a traditional `vatti' cutting grass during the monsoon. The scene is from Velliyoor in Perambra grama panchayat in Kozhikode district. Another is the bluish frame of Bekkal fort shot from an unusual angle.

Pictures of an elephant bathing in the Kalpathy River, woman fetching firewood on the banks of the Bhavani, children with colourful umbrellas on the walkway of Kozhikode beach, a priest lighting the lamp of a temple that has been surrounded with waters on all sides, the Madur temple in Kasaragod, Muzhippilangadi beach, blooming orchids at Attapadi, the Ollappamanna Mana, well of the Nalpadi kings, rubber plantations at Nilambur, scenes from the Silent Valley — all bring to mind the different facets of life during the monsoon.

Jayan says the exhibition will introduce Malabar and its monsoon to the world.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

40,000 to begin schooling in Kozhikode
Embracing rain, the Malabar way
Giving expression to creative skills

Copyright © 2006, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu