KERALA CULTURE
Kerala has a great culture that has been contributed by the people and different races. The history of Kerala can tell about the process of culture synthesis.Throughout the ages, Kerala has proved that it can respond to any challenges through its adaptation and combination of old traditions.The people of Kerala have got an honor among those who have achieved Indian cultural heritage. The culture of Kerala is a part of Indian culture. Kerala’s culture has persisted due to the reasons of unity, continuity and universality. It gives importance to the human achievements in any fields like religion, philosophy, language, art, education and social organization.
The cultural heritage of Kerala can be seen from the different art forms and customs of Kerala. The landlords of earlier times encouraged these arts and culture together with holding the moral values of it. A significance of art of Kerala is the special visual effects and good music. Kerala can boast of its performing arts proudly. There is no other state in India which can match up with the creativity of arts of Kerala. The people of Kerala lead a simple life and are culturally inclined and traditional and celebrate the festivals well. The traditional costumes of Keralites are mundu and neriyathu.
The culture of Kerala is a part of both Indian and Dravidian culture. Even then there is some part that has its own flavor. The culture of Kerala was expanded with the influence of neighboring areas as well. The main religion in Kerala is Hinduism even though there are people following Christianity and Islam. The language, dress, organizations and culture of Kerala are distinct. It is interesting to note that there is a similarity in the language and customs of Kerala to that of the Mediterranean civilization, Egyptian civilization and the Indus valley civilization. It is believed that the Dravidas has inhabited the western part of India by making Madurai as their capital. In the songs called as Vadakkan Pattu it is mentioned that the Ezhavas had arrived to Kerala from Ezham which is the present day Sri Lanka. The region which is now called as Kerala was developed at a very late stage and the culture also was developed slowly.
People of Kerala: An amazing race of people, following a unique lifestyle-the perfect blend of traditional, time-honored practices and progressive, innovative trends.
Kerala Food: A delectable cuisine, unique to the region which involves the locally available ingredients such as coconuts, seafood, rice etc.
Performing Arts: An interesting combination of dance, music, theater and mythology. Apart from the famous folk dances viz. Kathakali, Koothu and Mohiniyattom, a tradition of ritual arts are such as Theyyam, Kummattikkali and Mudiyettu has also been kept alive
Kerala Music: Like the rest of South India, Kerala�s classical music is essentially Carnatic, raag - taal based music. It is also famed for Sopanam. Music is an integral part of the every day life. There are the traditional folk songs for occasions such as marriages and childbirth and also the devotional songs such as Ayyappanpattu and Maripattu. A number of musical instruments including wind and string instruments, percussions are played and practiced in Kerala
Kerala Painting: Other than the unique art of body painting for specific dance forms such as Kathakali, Kerala has a rich style of oil paintings. While the state identifies with the rest of India in its use of henna to paint parts of the body such as hands and feet, Kerala has also its singular art forms of floor drawings and paintings (Kalamezhuthu).
Kerala Handicrafts: Among the variety of handicrafts produced in Kerala, the more renowned are sandalwood items, woodcraft, handlooms and metal work (especially brass and copper).
Kerala Martial Arts and Sports: Sports and Martial Arts take prime importance in the life of a Malayali. Not only are sport competitions (such as rowing competitions) part of the Festivalcustoms, there is, in Kerala, a tradition of martial arts training. Many of these are holistic physical development systems and are tauht in combination with ayurveda, accupressure, herbalism etc.
Malayalam Literature: Though the origins of are generally traced to Tamil, due to its affinity to the classical language, Malayalam has evolved and is a vast ocean as it stands today. The prose, poetry and plays are appreciated by critics worldwide.
Malayalam Calendar (Kollavarsham): The Malayalis use a calendar called the Kollavarsham in which the year starts from Onam in mid September.
Festivals of Kerala: Kerala is the land of high festivities and cheer. A number of Festival like Onam, Vishu and Thiruvathirai are celebrated. They are usually marked by family get together, cheer and festivity.
Kerala Matrimony: Marriage in Kerala is usually arranged by one�s family. Inter caste marriage is the common practice with marriage rituals specific to each community.
Kerala Movies: Malayalam movies started in 1928, when the 1st silent movie was released inKerala. Since then Malayalam movies have come a long way and the cinema industry is now a flourishing business with Malayali movies competing on an international level.
Kerala News: In keeping with the rest of the world, Kerala has a number of newspapers in both Malayali and English. With the advent of technology a number of websites have come up which report global news in both languages.
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