Chettinad Heritage and Cultural Festival Karaikudi Program

If visiting Chettinad and experiencing the region’s rich culture, delicious cuisine and exceptional architecture has been on your to-do list for too long, then the upcoming Chettinad Heritage and Cultural Festival is a good place to start.

Curated by renowned Bharatanatyam artist Leela Samson, the four-day festival to be held next month will bring forth literary talks, dance and musical performances. “The main idea is to draw attention to the heritage properties of Chettinad and our cultural moorings which are well maintained in districts like Chettinad and surrounding areas like Pudukkottai,” says Leela of the event to be held in Leela. The architecturally stunning Chettiar Haveli and spacious courtyard, as well as in the open air.

The line-up includes temple tours and talks by historian Chitra Madhavan, visits to the mansions of Chettinad houses at Athangudi and Kadiyapatti, a visit to the factory churning out beautiful Athangudi tiles, a visit to Ayyanar Grove in Tamil Nadu by the founder-director of Dakshina Chitra Heritage is included. Museum, Deborah Thiagarajan, a talk on jewelery and textiles of Chettinad by Deborah Thiagarajan, jewelery historian and author Usha Balakrishnan, talks on architecture, vocal concerts, Bharatanatyam performances, cooking lessons at The Bungalow, Karaikudi, and a market in Karaikudi at MS House Apart from selling textiles, jewellery, paintings and much more.

Leela describes how the idea for the festival started after talks about Chettinad’s mansions and their dissolution over the years. “Instead of being sold, I suggested that it become a city of privately owned art institutions, galleries and museums. A haven for learning and preserving the havelis in all their glory,” says the Padma Shri awardee, of The Bungalow With Meenakshi Meiyappan’s blessings, she, along with The Bungalow’s general manager, Yakub George, began the thought process and then community experts and elders were brought in to join in.

A snapshot of Spanda Dance Company | photo credit: Meha Desai

Leela believes that the highlight of the festival will be Chitra Madhavan’s lectures that will provide a deeper understanding of the Shiva and Perumal currents of thought. Coronation and Nadaswaram concerts at Vinayakar Temple, and Ayyanar Marg led by Deborah.

And if you’re a first-time visitor, she suggests visiting some of the mansions that are still privately owned and therefore not easily accessible. “And, do all the things we are arranging on a platter – Chettinad sarees, jewellery, Athangudi tiles, temples,” she says.

Leela goes on to say that following the incident, she hopes the community will come together to create a black-and-white picture gallery, a museum with videos of ceremonies and weddings, family songs and recipes, and trade and trade between her and the South. Trade routes will also be explored. -East Asia.

The festival will be held from August 12 to 15. For a Donor Pass of ₹15,000 that allows entry to all events, contact 9148324801.

Meenakshi Srinivasan

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Leela Samson | photo credit: Vedhan M