Kochi, 08 September(HS): Kerala bade farewell to Onam 2025 on Monday after a fortnight long fun, feast and frolicking. The highlight of the festivities was Monday’s Pulikkali (Tiger Dance) at Thrissur that saw 450 men dressed as tigers dancing to the tunes of percussion instruments. The ‘tigers’ representing nine villages in the city suburbs were in an exhilarating mood as this year saw the Union Government offering Rs three lakh per tiger dance team.

The “tigers” straight from their “dens” invaded the Thrissur town as traffic came to a grinding halt. Spectators from all over Kerala who had gathered to watch the extravaganza were entertained in an unprecedented manner. “Pulikkali is the personal pride of the people in Thrissur. The Pooram, which is celebrated with gaiety during May, is the other event. These two festivities give life to Thrissur town, which otherwise wears a sleepy look,” Nandakishore, Malayalam film actor and humorist told HS.

But the Thrissur Municipal Corporation pulling down all the hoardings that congratulated Union Minister of tourism Suresh Gopi shocked the people. “This is the first time in the history of Pulikkali that the union government paid Rs three lakh as financial assistance to the participating teams. There are eight teams and a total of Rs 24 lakh was distributed to them without any fanfare,” said Sudheer Damodaran, a social activist based in Thrissur.

Hindusthan Samachar / Manohar Yadavatti