Four-day ‘Namma Ooru Thiruvizha’ at 16 locations from Jan 13

CHENNAI: The annual cultural jamboree Chennai Sangamam, organised at the state capital during the Pongal festival, has returned to feed the artistic appetite of the people again. The state Tourism and Culture Department has planned a four-day cultural event from January 13.

Chief Minister MK Stalin will inaugurate the signature cultural event of the city at Island Grounds a day before Pongal. A whopping 700 artists have been roped in from across the state and country for what would be called ‘Chennai Sangamam – Namma Ooru Thiruvizha’ which would be held at 16 different locations in the city from January 14 to 17.

A mixture of folk and classical arts (both dance and music) plus other state dances would be performed in 30-minute slots from 6 pm to 9 pm daily during the four days at the 16 designated locations, which include parks, playgrounds and beaches.

Among the locations are Corporation Ground in Kolathur, Robinson playground in Royapuram, Nageswara Rao park in Mylapore, Semmozhi Poonga, Tennis Ground in Nungambakkam, Tower park in Anna Nagar, Elliot’s Beach in Besant Nagar, Beach Road in Tiruvanmiyur, Natesan Park in T Nagar and Ramakrishna Nagar ground in Valasaravakkam.

Organisers have also planned to host traditional food festivals by inviting established traditional caterers like Thalapakkati, Iruttu Kadai Halwa and a few others. They have planned to source and sell products of those caterers unable to turn up at the event venues.

The cultural festival could also feature a few traditional games this time. The events would happen simultaneously at all locations in the city. The artists were selected by conducting district-level auditions where regional committees shortlisted them and sent videotapes of their performance to the state headquarters for final selection.

When asked Dr B Chandra Mohan, principal secretary to the state tourism department said, “We expect to see a lot more excitement and turn out of the people this Pongal.” The government, which restricted the event to Chennai last time as the city just bounced back from the impact of COVID, has planned to hold similar events at other cities like Coimbatore, Salem, Tiruchy, Tirunelveli and Madurai during the course of the year based on availability of place and time and facilities.

A cultural renaissance spearheaded by Kanimozhi Karunanidhi in the previous DMK regime (2006-11), the event made a comeback following DMK’s return to power in 2021 after it was shelved during the 10-year AIADMK regime. The event, which was renamed ‘Namma Ooru Thiruvizha’ last year, has included Chennai Sangamam to its title this year.

A mixture of folk and classical arts (both dance and music) would be performed in 30-minute slots from 6 pm to 9 pm daily