Our Asia Specialist Shares Some Wonderful Portraits From Her Travels Through the Heart of South India.
In January, I was incredibly fortunate to join our Treasures of South India adventure, which travels from Cochin to Chennai. We explored colorful Hindu temples and tropical landscapes, cruised on the beautiful backwaters of Kerala by private houseboat, and enjoyed game viewing in Periyar National Park, where we saw wild elephants. We also had the special opportunity to witness the Pongal Festival during our time in the southern state of Tamil Nadu. This four-day thanksgiving celebration takes place during harvest time, and featured singing, dancing, and other colorful festivities.
Of the countless highlights from my time in South India, it was the people who had the greatest impact on me—the warm welcome into their culture was absolutely astounding. From watching children taking ferries to school in Kerala to seeing people dressed in their finest clothes for the Pongal Festival, our group was able to take a peek into the lives of local people, which was such a delight! Here are some of the many photos of the beautiful people I met. I hope they inspire you to journey to this wonderful region of the world.
A Kathakali perromer and his wide eyes. Kathakali is an ancient dance-drama native to Kerala.
Kathakali is a dance traditionally performed by men, but modern compositions now include women.
A sweet girl in Madurai.
A man praying outside a Hindu temple, looks up with a smile.
I saw this man at the Pongal Festival. We were lucky to witness many Pongal festivities during the trip, including bull running, live music, dancing, and communal meals.
A young boy dressed-up in his finest tunic for Pongal.
A girl, also wearing her finest dress for Pongal, stood in her doorway. It is not uncommon for local people to welcome you into their homes during the holiday, in order to give thanks and celebrate.
Two friends come together for a photo.
This man helped herd bulls used at the Pongal ceremonies (during the “bull running” activities).
While driving in Madurai, we came across Pongal celebrations in a small village where this man seemed to play an important role in blessing the locals.
A group of children stand proudly.
We me this man in the Chettinad region, which is the cultural home of Chettiars, a community of wealthy merchants and jewelry dealers dating back many centuries ago. The Chettiars built beautiful homes with incredible woodwork and filled them with with lavish furnishings. Their once-magnificent homes still stand, with caretakers keeping watch, like this man.
We encountered this woman at a small temple in Tamil Nadu–no other state in India is so dominated by temples and famed for its temple architecture.
We met this boy and his family in Kumbakonam, the former center of the Chola dynasty, which is one of the longest ruling dynasties in the history of southern India.
This woman was among a group of female Hindu devotees who were on a pilgrimage to the temples of Mamallapuram, and wore all-red. Worshippers dressed in varying colors to signify where they were headed and what they were worshipping.
