Kerala offers a wonderful range of things to do. There is something for everyone. In around your holiday destination all time you can find Kerala traditional art form. Kerala the land of arts and festivals.
ONAM

Onam, the harvest festival is celebrated to welcome the legendary king, Mahabali. During Onam all of Kerala has an aura of festivity and pomp. Intricate floral deco- rations are made on the courtyard to welcome this king on his visit to his beloved subjects.

Onam Tourist Week presents a fascinating display of various art and dance forms at 20 venues in Thiruvananthapuram and other major districts. Also thousands of people gather on the banks of the River Pamba to witness the exciting snake boat races. The festival is marked with elephant processions, Kathakali dances, fireworks, water carnivals etc. Authentic traditional feasts prepared for Onam are a gastro- nomic's delight
THRISSUR POORAM

The Thrissur Pooram festival is a mammoth spectacle with arrays of thirty caparisoned elephants bedecked with gold ornaments. Each elephant is ridden by three mahouts holding objects symbolizing royalty. Accompanied by the beats of drums and cymbals- Chendamelam- the quintessentially Kerala music. Every year lakhs of people crowd to watch this piece-de-resistance of a festival. This festival is celebrated in month of April/May.
This annual celebration is an august gathering of the connoisseurs of fine Indian classical dance forms including Bharathanatyam, Odissi, Mohiniyattom and Kathak. We can enjoy their performance at the Nishagandhi open air auditorium at Thiruvananthapuram. Spread over 7 mesmerising evenings this festival is a grand treat for lovers of dance and tourists. Nishagandhi incidentally means the fragrance of the night.
BOAT RACES

The backwaters of Alappuzha is the venue of the spectacular Nehru Trophy snake boat race. Excitement and enthusiasm fill the air. Magnificently decorated Chundan Vallams, with raised stems resembling the hood of a cobra slit the calm backwaters. Powered by more than 150 singing and shouting oarsmen. Scores of boats take part and are cheered and jeered by thousands of enthusiastic spectators. Payippad and Aranmula villages too witness the strength and the power of oarsmen who vie for a victorious finish.
KATHAKALI

Kerala owes its transnational fame to this nearly 300 years  old classical  dance  form  which combines facets of ballet, opera, masque and the pantomime. It is said to have evolved from other performing arts like Kootiyattam, Krishnanattam and Kalarippayattu. Kathakali explicates ideas and stories from the Indian epics and Puranas.

Presented in the temple precincts after dusk falls Kathakali is heralded by the Kelikottu or the beating of drums  in  accompaniment  of  the Chengila (gong).  The  riches  of  a  happy  blending of colour,  expressions,  music, drama and dance is unparallelled in any other art form.
               
Kathakali make-up
Costume  is elaborate  with the face  painted up. Great importance is laid on the Vesham or make-up which are  of five  types -  Pacha, Kathi, Thadi, Kari and Minukku.

The pomp and magnificence of Kathakali is partly due to its decor part of which is  the  kireetam  or huge  headgear and the  kanchukam  the over sized jackets, and a long skirt worn over a thick padding of cushions. The identity of the actor is completely mutilated to create a super human being of larger-than-life proportion.
THIRUVATHIRAKALI ( Festival Dance )

Thiruvathirakali is a dance performed by women, in order to attain everlasting marital bliss, on Thiruvathira day in the Malayalam month of Dhanu (December- January). The dance is a celebration of marital fidelity and the female energy, for this is what brought Kamadeva (the god of love) back to life after he was reduced to ashes by the ire of Lord Siva. The sinuous movements executed by a group of dancers around a nilavilakku, embody 'lasya' or the amorous charm and grace of the feminine. The dance follows a circular, pirouetting pattern accompanied by clapping of the hands and singing. Today, Thiruvathirakali has become a popular dance form for all seasons

MOHINIYATTAM


      The sinuous dance of the enchantress, this is a distinctive classical dance        form of Kerala. Slow, graceful, swaying movements of the body and limbs and       highly emotive eye and hand gestures are unique to this dance form. The        simple, elegant gold-filigreed dress, in pure white or ivory, is akin to the        traditional attire of the women of Kerala. The origin of Mohiniyattom is rooted        in Hindu mythology. Once the ocean of milk was churned by the gods and        demons to extract the elixir of life and immortality. The demons made away        with this divine brew.
Lord Vishnu came to the rescue of the panicky gods and assumed the female form of an amorous celestial dame Mohini. Captivating the demons with her charms, Mohini stole the elixir from them and restored it to the gods. This dance was adopted by the Devadasi or temple dancers, hence also the name 'Dasiattam' which was very popular during the Chera reign from 9th to 12th century.