South Indian Culture

Pondicherry is a cultural hub in south India. Home to people from various states, it is a diverse territory. It is divided into the French quarter and the Tamil quarter. Hence, we can find both modern as well as traditional people here. CUISINES From baguettes and croissants and idly and sambar, to kadala curry, everything is found here. FESTIVALS Christmas and Easter, as well as South Indian festivals such as Pongal, Navaratri, and Diwali, as well as French festivals such as Bastille Day are celebrated with equal enthusiasm and joy. ART FORMS South Indian carnatic music is very famous here. Dance forms prevalent include Bharathanatyam and Kuchipudi. Golu dolls, fondly called Puducherry Bommais, are very famous here. ARCHITECTURE The French quarter, located near the beach, is dominated by perpendicular roads lined by colonial villas with long courtyards, big walls, and grand doors, painted with pale yellow, blue and white colours. This area is ver...

The theatre culture is one of the most common trasition among the kannadians. The theatre culture is also referred to by the name Rangabhoomi. Natakas is also a  common tradition among the people of karnataka where a number of literature related to epics and puranas are also written in praise of the heroic characters.  Another common tradition among the kannadigas is that in temples on the special occasion or an auspicious days like Dasara and maha shivaratri battles ,story, devotions or vratha are sung or narrated by the experts to the people as a part of tradition where a person  tells a story in a outstanding manner accompanied by music at back ground and this goes on for the whole night. The kannadiga weddings are more like the traditional hindu weddings.  The kannadigas very much adhere to the traditional  costumes and rituals at the time of wedding. There is a traditional practice of  worshipping the spirits mainly by the pepole of north karnatak...

             Art and culture of Karnataka                                     The southern state of Karnataka, in India, has a distinct art and culture. Apart from kannadigas, karnataka is home to Tuluvas.         Karnataka has achieved a prominent place in the world of Hindustani music.          Yakshagana, a form of dance drama is one of the  major theatrical forms in coastal Karnataka. A fusion of folk and classical tradition makes Yakshagana a unique form of art which includes colourful costumes, music , dance, singing, etc...  Karnataka is also famous for paintings. There are many art galleries in karnataka.                        S.sharmila

                           Carnatic music                                        Carnatic music, karnatic Sangita or Karnataka sangitam, is a system of music commonly associated with southern India, like Andra Pradesh, telungana, karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu as well as Sri Lanka.           Although there are many stylistic differences, the basic elements of sruthi, swara, raga, tala, form the foundation of improvisation and composition in both Carnatic and Hindustani music.           Carnatic music is mainly sung through compositions, especially the kriti- a form developed between 14th and 20th centuries.                                          ...

Mohiniyattam          Mohiniyattam is one of the eight classical dances of India that developed and remain popular among various parts of Kerala. Mohiniyattam gets its name from the word Mohini - a mythical enchantress avathar of our Hindu god Vishnu. This dance follows the Lasya style. The repertoire of mohiniyattam includes music in the Carnatic style. The dance was systematized in the 18th century.                                              The socio-political conflict ultimately led to renewed interest, rivival, and reconstruction of mohiniyattam by the people of Kerala.                                S.sharmila

                             Kolatam         Kolatam or the stick dance, is one of the most famous dance in Andra Pradesh. It is also called as kolannalu or kolkolannalu. It is mainly performed during village festivals. It is a combination of rythmic mivements, songs and music. This dance comprises dancers in the range 8 to 40.  This dance was originated in the seventh century. Mostly this dance starts by the chant of Lord Ganesha. During this dance performance, the musicians play different musical instruments. This dance became popular in almost all parts of South india.  kolatam sticks                        S. Sharmila

Not a day goes by that I don't spot at least one person wearing a kalamkari printed outfit. Kalamkari is a traditional art involving hand painting or block printing of textiles. Produced in Andhra Pradesh, it serves as the main source of income for many families. The word kalamkari is made of two words: kalam meaning pen and kari meaning work. Thus, the painting is traditionally done with a tamarind pen, using natural dyes. Shading is done using a very few colours. This art form involves more than 20 steps of dyeing, washing, bleaching, etc. Kalamkari paintings are very fine and intricately detailed. The paintings done range from glorious scenes from epics like Ramayana and Mahabharatha , and beautiful sceneries, to animals and birds. This art form has been prevalent in two areas: Machilipatnam in the Krishna district and Srikalahasti in the Chithoor district.Machilipatnam paintings are done by using a sharp pen to create colourful paintings of nature ...

Kaapi (South Indian filter coffee) is the heart and soul of South India. It is hard for us South Indians to pass a day without having at least one cup of this strong and dark, yet sweet beverage. Espressos and lattes cannot compare to our traditional kaapi. Preparation of this kaapi is a delicate art. Firstly , delicious coffee beans are picked, roasted and ground nicely. Some chickory is added to give aroma and colour to the coffee. This powder is then added to a filter, traditionally made of brass, and then hot water is poured on it. The decoction is prepared by allowing this to settle for about 10-15 minutes. The stronger the decoction, the better the taste. Kaapi is then prepared by mixing this decoction with fresh cow's milk, sugar and a tad bit of love, by pouring it back and forth using a dabarah set (a saucer of sorts and a tumbler) till it froths. This froth makes the kaapi special. The pouring of the coffee back and forth helps aerate the drink, mix...

A TREASURE TROVE OF CULTURE One of the oldest venues in the city that resembles a two-storied temple complex, Sri Thyagaraya Gana sabha provides a platform to promote Telugu language, literature, music and dance. It is about 2000sq.yards. It has one humongous statue of a 32 foot loard Hanuman at the enter. The temple is surrounded by trees and music vibrating though its hall ways l: Sri thayagaraya gana sabha is a culture treasure chest in itself. "Established in 1966,the organization's sole aim is to promote Telugu language art and culture through out" says Banfisrinivas, administrative manager of Sri Thiyagaraya gana sabha, when asked about the reason behind naming the organization after saint Thyagaraya gana sabha he said," Thyagaraya gana sabha is one of the most highly celebrated composers of carnatic music. An interesting fact about the place is  that the entire premises, auditorium and hallways alike, are filled with oil paintings. While some depict stori...

SAMMAKKA SARALAMMA JATARA:  The story behind this fstival SAMMAKA SARALAMMA JATARA is quiet interesting. Sammaka was found by hunters as a baby playing among tigers. She was adopted by the head of the tribe and later married a tribal chief under the kakatiya rulers. She fought bravely and caused a lot of damage to the enemy  after her entire family including daughter  sarakka perished in a war with the larger ,better equipped kakatiya army . The kakatiya PM after seeing her bravery and valour ,offers sammakka peace and a position as chief queen ,but rejects the proposal to avenge her dead family. It is said that she disappeared in to forest after being severely injured in battle and promised her people that she will look after them as long as they remember her. BATHUKAMMA FESTIVAL: Bathukamma festival indicates the beginning of sarad or sharath Ruthu and is celebrated by hindu women in the month of  september or october just before dussehera. Bathukamma is a...

Cotton and silk textiles are very famous n Andra pradesh . They are very famous all over the world.  Andrapradesh people developed the art of weaving, dying, and printing in ancient times. Andra pradesh was the center of civilisation.  Hence the traditional weaving techniques have been developed over 3000 years ago. They wove the clothes by traditional weaving method. KALAMKARI FABRIC: The kalamkari fabric is another variety of clothes.  The cloth is painted with mythological figures and epic stories. Hence the color for these paintings were prepared with vegetables,these are natural colors.kalamkari sarees ,punjab dress tops ,salwar kameez are very popular all over India.kalamkari fabric is trending today.A lots of people wear it all over the world. TRIBAL COSTUMES OF ANDRAPRADESH: Lambadies are half nomadic tribal people in andrapradesh and wear colourful dresses. Their dresses are traditional folk dresses. The women wear gorgeous colourful and heavy garments...

DOLLU KUNITHA An electric folk dance form, dollu refers to the drum and kunitha means dance in Kannada. Originally this was a very popular entertainment for village folks, in the days when television didn't exist. Every hamlet or village had a Dolly kunitha;most have one even today. A team consists of twelve -fourteen dancer's with one central singer - cum - director who has one metal instrument that he uses to set rhythm. Over the years, Dolly kunitha has became a revered folk dance in Karnataka. Every official function, any big occasion, a Dollu team is called. When u visit the Sharavathy u must experience a Dollu performance; it's a must. When u see pictures it might seen like any other dance, but the energy it generates is electric. The beat of the drum, the calls of the dancers, the rhetoric it generates and the setting against which it is performed mostly in a large grounds by the side of the village or a harvested paddy field so that the gathering may sit aro...

UGADI: This festival is celebration of telegu new year. It falls in the month of april -may. People wear new dress,decorate their houses and make sweets and distribute to friends and family on this day. Purampoli or bhakshya is  the special sweet made on this day. People also make festoons with mango leaves called thorana and hang them on the doors of the house.As a part of celebration they go to temples and pray. DECCAN FESTIVAL: It is a five day festival celebrated at yutub shahi tombs in hyderabad on second friday,Saturday, sunday of april every year. It is dedicated to hyderabad's arts ,crafts ,cuisine and culture. During the festival ,a food and handicrafts fair is also held.It is such a colourful festival with lots of lights. LUMBINI FESTIVAL: This festival is celebrated in hyderabad and nagarajunasagar for three days in the month of december every year. It is a Buddhist festival. Buddhism was once a major religion followed in andrapradesh.This festival is ...

Vishu Vishu is an extremely significant festival in Kerala and is observed by Hindu Malayalese. This festival indicates joy and prosperity and Vishukkani marks the Start of the day. Vishukkani is the first sight on vishu day and lot of care is taken while arranging the items in uruli which is a mental vessel. The vessel contains a panorama of religious auspicious items like holy book or Bhagwat Gita, flowers, fruits, gold coins and vegetables. A metal mirror val- kannadi is also placed in the uruli. The ambience is very spiritual and it completed by the image of Lord Vishnu along with 2 oil lamps. The feast of Vishnu is very elaborate  and contains various types of dishes. It has almost equal portions of salty, sweet, bitter and sour items. In the evening children enjoy with fireworks, they are also given money by elderly people at home. In some villages group of young boys and girls entertain people wearing skirt made out of banana leaves and a mask.  BY ISH...

Kerala food Puttu Puttu is one of the most popular breakfast dishes of kerala. A mix of wet rice flour and grated coconut is steamed in a steamer in cylindrical shape steamer called as puttu maker. Other than rice flour , wheat flour, ragi and semolina are also used to prepare this delicacy. A single piece of puttu contains 64.7 grams of carbohydrates, 4.9grams of protein and 2.3grams of dietary fibre. Vattayappam Vattayappam literally means round bread. This fermented, steamed and spongy rice cake is common among the Christian community, and is served as both a snack and breakfast. The batter is made by grinding rice and coconut together. It is then fermented by adding yeast and some sugar.  Ila ada  Ila ada is a popular sweet delicacy of kerala. The traditional evening snack is prepared by steaming the rice flour dough in banana leaf. The dough is first spread over a piece of banana leaf, and later the grated coconut and jaggery mix are liberally smeared across ...