Pride, Tradition, and Controversy: A Glimpse into One of South India’s Oldest Festivals
Dozens of men and boys gather on the side of a road in Alappuzha, a city in the southern Indian state of Kerala, on a late afternoon in mid-March.
They’re hard at work building one of 13 Kuthira, or large wooden towers, using saws, ropes, and their bare hands. The towers are offerings to the Hindu Goddess Bhadrakali, the protector of the good. Each represent a Kara, or region surrounding the Chettikulangara Devi temple, the home of the celebrated deity....