Kollam: A temple in Kerala has a role to play in blurring the lines of gender. In a 19-day long festival at Kollam's Kottankulangara Devi temple, one could see hundreds of men dressed as women offering prayers to deities. Dissolving not just gender but borders, men from New Zealand and London also too took part in the ritual.
It is believed that a group of boys who used to herd cows would dress up as girls and offer flowers and a coconut dish called "kottan" to a stone. Impressed by the devotion, one day, a goddess appeared before one of the boys and blessed him. Subsequently, a temple came up in the place and the ritual became an annual feature.
The cross-dressing is part of traditional ritual festivities which takes place on the last two days of the festival known as "Kottankulangara Chamayavilakku". The men also carry large lamps.
"Yesterday (Saturday), I had 20 clients... I take around 45 minutes. While one of us does the makeup, another team works to fix the ladies' hair and yet another group dresses them up in either saree, or traditional Kerala salwar-kameez or Kerala skirt and blouse," says Sunil Master, 45, a dance master who is also a makeup man
(With IANS inputs)
It is believed that a group of boys who used to herd cows would dress up as girls and offer flowers and a coconut dish called "kottan" to a stone. Impressed by the devotion, one day, a goddess appeared before one of the boys and blessed him. Subsequently, a temple came up in the place and the ritual became an annual feature.
The cross-dressing is part of traditional ritual festivities which takes place on the last two days of the festival known as "Kottankulangara Chamayavilakku". The men also carry large lamps.
Advertisement
"Yesterday (Saturday), I had 20 clients... I take around 45 minutes. While one of us does the makeup, another team works to fix the ladies' hair and yet another group dresses them up in either saree, or traditional Kerala salwar-kameez or Kerala skirt and blouse," says Sunil Master, 45, a dance master who is also a makeup man
Advertisement
(With IANS inputs)
COMMENTS
Advertisement
5-Year-Old Crushed Under Chariot Wheels At Kerala Temple, Dies: Cops Late Flight, Emergency Landing, Stuck For 3 Days: Indian Fliers' Nightmare Putin Responds To Biden's Missile Approval By Changing Nuclear Doctrine Explained: Why Delhi's AQI Was 494 Today But International Monitor Said 1,600 Main Shooter In Baba Siddique Murder Case To Remain In Custody Till Sunday Tamil Nadu To Use AI Alerts To Protect Elephants From Being Hit By Trains Can't Present Award In MS Subbulakshmi's Name To TM Krishna: Court Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.