very year, on the second Saturday of August, the serene backwaters in Alappuzha, in Kerala, bubbles with enthusiasm and festivities.
It is the day of the Nehru Trophy Boat Race on the Punnamda Lake, the most exciting of boat races in this state.
One of India's most unique sporting festivals, this year's race, held last Saturday, was a very competitive event. The peaceful lakefront swarmed 200,000 spectators, many of them domestic and foreign tourists.
Boats have sparred on the Kuttanad or backwaters for 400 years. Right from the time when the rajas of the former states of Chempakasseri (Ambalappuzha), Kayamkulam ,Thekkumkoor (Changanacherry) and Vadakkumkoor (Kottayam) in the ancient Travancore area fought their battles on these waters.
The major attraction of the race is the competition between snake boats or chundanvallams.
Text: George Iype
Photograph: P R Rajesh
Earlier Slide Show:
Brothers and sisters we worship
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