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This is done by girls
dressed as peacocks, resplendent with peacock feathers and a
glittering head-dress complete with a beak. This beak can be opened
and closed with the help of a thread tied
to it, and manipulated from within dress.
Bommalattam
or Puppet Show
Puppet
shows are held in every village during festivals and fairs. There are
always kinds of puppets used for this show made of cloth, wood,
leather, etc. They are controlled by strings or wires. The persons
stand behind a screen and the puppets are held in front. The stories
enacted in the puppet shows are from Ved-puranas, history and
folklore. These shows are very entertaining and hold both adults and
childrens quite for many hours.
Kummi
Kummi
is one of the most important and ancient forms of village dances of
Tamilnadu. It originated when there were no musical instruments, with
the participants clapping their hands to keep time. This is performed
by women; many varieties of Kummi, such as, Poonthatti Kummi, Deepa
Kummi, Kulavai Kummi, Kadir Kummi, Mulaipari Kummi etc are known. The
women stand in a circle and dance clapping their hands rhythamically.
This dance is usually performed during temple festivals, Pongal, the
harvest festival, family functions like the one to celebrate the
coming of age (onset of puberty) of the girl-child etc. The first line
of the song is sung by the leading lady, which the others repeat.
Kai
Silambu Attam
This
dance is performed in temples during Navaratri festival. The dancers
wear ankle-bells and hold anklets or silambu in their hands, which
make noise when shaken. They perform various stepping styles jumps.
The dance is in praise of all female deities, the most preferred
being the powerful angry goddess - Kali or Durga.
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