''Adharam Madhuram, Vadanam Madhuram...", the beauty of Krishna. Odissi dance by Orissa Dance Academy led by Ms. Aruna Mohanty.

Sarangi and ghazals by Ustad Faiyaz Khan at Nishagandhi

Ghazals by Ustad Faiyaz Khan at Nishagandhi festival, Kanakunnu Palace, Trivandrum. This was preceded by Sarangi recital by the same artiste.

Bob Geldof in Trivandrum

Bob Geldof of Band Aid fame, performed at the conclusion of the the Hay Festival in Trivandrum, Kerala. at the open air Nishagandhi auditorium. Enthusiastic fans braved the intermittent  showers to enjoy the performance.

Elephants

Recently, the  Government of India declared elephant as a national heritage animal. This will help in stepping up the measures for their protection.  Kerala has a large number of elephants in captivity. There are also many instances of ill treatment of  pachyderms leading to violent reaction from them. This enactment will, hopefully ensure  humane handling of these animals.

Elephant parade held in July 2010 at the Chandrasekaran Nair police stadium, Trivandrum

A child watching the elephant line-up

Local body elections and Woman Power

The elections to the local bodies of Kerala will be 23rd October. 50% of seats are reserved for women.

Wall posters of candidates in my ward.

Tagore Exhibition on Wheels

The Indian Railways, dedicated a whole rake of air conditioned coaches to showcase the life and works of Rabindranath Tagore on his 150th Anniversary. The rake went from station to station all over India and was in Trivandrum in the second week of October.

Visitors viewing the Tagore exhibition on rails at Trivandrum Central Station, Platform #1.

Tholpavakoothu - Puppet play

'Tholpavakoothu' - shadow puppet play with leather puppets was sponsored by Indian Council of Cultural Research, Trivandrum at the Theerthapada mandapam, East Fort on Saturday, 19th June 2010. Pulavar Ramachandran and his team performed 'Ramayana'. This unique form of art,  with its skilfully manipulated  animated leather figures was well appreciated by the select audience. The commentary was in a mixture of Malayalam, Sanskrit and Tamil. Perhaps, they could have tried out some innovations in the vocal and musical support, like including female voice.