Phalguna Utsav is the annual festival celebrated in Thirunakkara Mahadevar Temple, located at the heart of the
Kottayam town. The presiding deity is
Lord Shiva.
The temple celebrates the ten-day festival in a grand manner. A highlight of the festival is the all-night Kathakali presentation on the third and fourth days. Various cultural programs including Mayilattom (peacock dance) and
Velakali are organized in the temple compound in the evening.
The Aarattu (a ritual procession on the tenth day of the festival) draws the attention of the people in and around the place. It starts in the afternoon of the final day, when nine caparisoned elephants are arranged in a line. The scenes of a mahout atop the elephants, holding high tinseled silk parasols (muthukuda) and swinging white tufts (venchamaram) and peacock feather fans (aalavattom) to the rhythm of the temple orchestra are eye-catching.
