Scholarship for Minorities in Kerala

Pre-matric scholarships of Ministry of Minority Affairs, Govt. of India, for financially backward minorities in Kerala. Download the application form and apply before august 11.

The scholarship will be awarded to the students from class 1 to class 10, who have secured not less than 50% marks in the previous final examination and annual income of their parents /guardian from all sources does not exceed Rs. 1 lakh.

30% of scholarship are reserved for girl students. Scholarship will not be given to more than two students from a family.

In Kerala, Scholarships for 29380 minority students (16600 Muslim students and 12780 Christian Students ) will be awarded in the year 2008-09.

For the details of Pre-matric scholarship click here..
Download the application form here…
Read the Kerala Government press release in malayalam.

Read instructions for the application for Post-matric scholarship on Kerala Government press release in malayalam.

You may also check the details of Post-matric scholarship and other schemes/programmes of Ministry of Minority Affairs, Govt. of India here…

Nehru Trophy Boat race

Punnamada Lake is getting ready to host the most popular and competetive Boat race of Kerala. Nehru Trophy Boat race held on the second saturday of August every year, is celebrated as a festival by the people of Alappuzha and the nearby places.

As a famous water sport event Nehru Trophy Boat race attracts thousands of indian and foreign visiters. Book your tickets early…

On the day of race the lake front will be transformed into a sea of spectators. The main attraction of the boat race is the competition of chundan vallams or snake boats.

Watch the video of Nehru Trophy Boat race 2007….

Read more about Nehru Trophy Boat race…

Nearest tourist places to visit

• Kochi
• Athirappilly and Vazhachal water falls
• Mattupetty
• Kovalam Beach
• Kumarakom Backwaters
• Thekkady – Kerala tourist place
• Munnar

Volvo Ocean Race at Kochi Port

Kochi port of Kerala is getting ready to host “The Volvo Ocean Race” 2008-09. This is the first time in 35 years of the race history that an Indian port associated with the event.

The race will start from Alicante in Spain and finishes at St. Petersburg in Russia.

See the race schedule below.

	Event	Date
Alicante	In-Port Race	04 Oct 2008
Alicante	Leg 1 Start	11 Oct 2008
Cape Town	Leg 2 Start	15 Nov 2008
Kochi (India)	Leg 3 Start	13 Dec 2008
Singapore	Leg 4 Start	18 Jan 2009
Qingdao	Leg 5 Start	14 Feb 2009
Rio De Janeiro	Leg 6 Start	11 Apr 2009
Boston	Leg 7 Start	16 May 2009
Galway	Leg 8 Start	6 Jun 2009
Goteborg	Leg 9 Start	14 Jun 2009
Stockholm	Leg 10 Start	25 Jun 2009
St. Petersburg	Race Finish	27 Jun 2009

The racing Yachts will arrive at Kochi port on December 3 and stay there for ten days. Cochin port trust and Kerala Tourism Department are hosting the events in Kochi.

The special arrangements for the race in BTP Jetty of Cochin Port and the Construction works of the race village near BTP Jetty are progressing fastly. It is expected that The Volovo Ocean Race event will attract tourists from India and abroad.

Visit the Volvo ocean race website or http://www.cochinoceanrace.com/ to know more..

Watch the video…

Allotment to Professional Degree courses 2008 – Submit your options

Centralised Allotment Process (CAP) to Kerala Engineering and Medical courses sheduled to begin on 05-07-2008. All eligible candidates can register their options through the website www.cee.kerala.gov.in/keam from 5th July 2008 10 am to 14th July 2008 10 am.

First Trial Allotment will be published on 10.07.2008 and second Trial Allotment will be published on 16.07.2008.

The first allotment to various courses will be published on 17.07.2008.

Candidates allotted to all courses will have to remit fee at selected branches of State Bank of Travancore (SBT) from 19.07.208 to 24.07.2008.

Students can register their options free of charge at the Information, Guidance and Option Facilitation Centres (IGOFC) and Institutions function as Help desks in all Districts of Kerala.

Information, Guidance and Option Facilitation Centers for registering options: click here…

List of Institutions to function as Help Desks only for registering options: click here…

Kerala Arts

Kathakali	Mohiniyattam	Ottamthullal
Koodiyattam	Koothu	Theyyam
Kalamezhuthu Paattu	Sarppam Thullal	Kalarippayatt

Kerala Tourist Places

Munnar	Kovalam Beach	Thekkady
Kumarakom	Mattupetty	Alappuzha
Wayanad	Athirappilly and vazhachal	Nelliyampathy
Malampuzha	Bekal	Thiruvananthapuram
Kochi City	Kozhikode City

Kalarippayatt

Kalarippayatt is a martial art originating and practiced in Kerala. It incorporates strikes, kicks, grappling, martial dance and weaponry as well as healing techniques. Regional variances of the Kalarippayattu are classified into Northern, Southern and Central styles.

The term Kalarippayatt is formed from the words “kalari” meaning school or gymnasium and payattu meaning to fight or to exercise.

Kalarippayatt may be one of the oldest martial arts in existence. Masters of Kalarippayattu are known as “Asaan or Gurukkal.

Northern Kalarippayatt (practiced mainly in the northern Malabar region of Kozhikode and Kannur) places comparatively more emphasis on weapons than on empty hands. Northern Kalarippayatt is distinguished by its meippayattu (physical training and use of full-body oil massage) to increase the practitioner’s flexibility and to treat muscle injuries incurred during practice. The term for such massages is thirummal and the massage specifically for physical flexibility chavutti thirummal (massage using feet pressure over the entire body).

In southern styles of Kalarippayatt (practiced mainly in old Travancore including the present Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu), practice and fighting techniques emphasize empty hands and applications.

The central style (practiced mainly in Thrissur, Malappuram, Palakkad and certain parts of Ernakulam districts is a composite from both the northern and southern styles that includes northern meippayattu preliminary exercises, southern emphasis on empty-hand techniques and its own distinctive techniques.

Weapons used in Kalarippayatt are Long Staff, Medium Stick, Long Stick, Flexible Sword, Short Stick, Curved Stick, Club or

Mace, Knife or Dagger, Machete or Kukri, Short Sword, Long Sword, Round Shield Spear etc.

It is claimed that learned persons can disable or kill their opponents by a mere touch in a Marmam (vulnerable parts of the human body). Marmam is taught only to the promising and levelheaded persons to forbid misuse of the technique.

Influence of kalarippayatt can be seen in major classical art forms of Kerala, mainly Kathakali.

Watch the video of Kalarippayatt…

Koothu

Chakyar Koothu is a performing art form of Kerala. It is a solo narrative performance interspersed with mime and comic interludes. However, unlike the stand-up comic, the performer has a wider leeway in that he can heckle the audience. This highly refined art form narrating stories from Hindu epics like Ramayana, Mahabharata and Puranas ( belonging to ancient times), combined with prevailing socio-political events, were originally performed in temples by members of Chakyar community along with Ambalavasi Nambiars. Chakyar narrates the story based on Sanskrit “champu prabandha” – mixture of prose and poetry. The medium used is refined Malayalam along with the original Sanskrit text.

In Chakyar koothu, facial expressions are important rather than choreography. Traditionally it was performed in Koothambalam, a place specially designed to perform Kutiyattam and Chakyar Koothu, inside a Hindu temple. The performer begins with a prayer to the deity of the temple. He then goes on to narrate a verse in Sanskrit before explaining it in Malayalam. The narration that follows touches upon social factors and various current events with great wit and humor.

A mizhav (A big percussion instrument made of copper) and a pair of cymbals are the only instruments accompany the performance.

Chakyar Koothu was performed only in Koothambalams of Hindu temples. Natyacharya Vidushakaratnam Padma Shri Guru Maani Madhava Chakyar a visionary and virtuoso of this art took Koothu and Koodiyattam outside the temples to the common people. He is considered as the greatest Chakyar Koothu and Kutiyattam artist of modern times.

He performed Chakyar Koothu for All India Radio and Doordarshan for the first time, which popularized this traditional art form among the common man.

Nangyar Koothu is a traditional art form performed by the women of the Ambalavasi Nambiar community of Kerala, known as Nangyaramma. Nangiarkoothu, an offshoot of Kutiyattam, is a solo performance with an antiquity of 1500 years. Nangiar koothu is the sole domain of female artistes.

The stories for the performance are taken from the text Sree Krishna Charitam, depicting the life of Hindu God Krishna. During the performance the actress presents the long-winded stories of Lord Krishna through facial expressions, hand gestures and body movements with the accompaniment of holy drum Mizhavu.

Koodiyattam or Kutiyattam

Koodiyattam, a Traditional art form of Kerala, performed in the Sanskrit language in Hindu temples, it is believed to be at 2000 years old. It is officially recognized by UNESCO as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

The meaning of Koodiyattam is combined acting, a combined performance of Chakyar (a community in Kerala) and Nangyar (the women of Ambalavasi Nambiar Caste). The main actor is a Chakyar who performs the ritualistic Koothu and Kutiyattam inside the temple or in the Koothambalam. The female roles are played by Nangyar.

Traditionally the main musical instruments used in Koodiyattam are Mizhavu, Kuzhitalam, Etakka, Kurumkuzhal and Sankhu.Mizhavu, the most prominent of these is a percussion instrument which is played by a person of the Ambalavas Nambiar caste accompanied by Nangyaramma playing the kuzhithalam (a type of cymbal).

In 1955 Guru Maani Madhava Chakyar performed Koodiyattam outside the temple for the first time. For performing the art forms outside the temples he faced lot of problems from the Chakyar community.

The performance of the maestro Maani Maadhava Chakyar made great impact on the people and art critics so that Koodiyattam and Mani Madhava Chakyar became famous outside Kerala also. He performed Koodiyattam all over India and popularized the traditional art form.

Watch the video….

Theyyam

The Theyyam or Theyyattam is a popular ritual art form of north Kerala particularly presented in the Kannur and Kasargod districts. As a living cult with centuries old traditions, ritual and custom, it embraces all castes and classes of Hindu religion. The term Theyyam is a corrupt form of Daivam (God). It is a rare combination of dance and music and reflects important features of a tribal culture. People here consider Theyyam as a God and they seek blessings from Theyyam.

The Theyyam dance is generally performed in front of the village shrines. It is also performed in the houses as ancestor worship.

Theyyam performs with elaborate make-up and costumes. There are different patterns of face painting for different types of theyyams. All dancers take a shield and sword in their hands.

Theyyam Dancer performs different steps repeated systematically, circumambulates the shrine and runs in the courtyard dances. Theyyam is accompanied by folk musical instruments like chenda, tudi, kuzhal and veekni are played with rhythm and recitation of the ritual songs describes the myths and legends of the particular diety.

Watch the video of Theyyam…