Kerala’s everyday heritage heroes

Sub : History

Sec: Art and Culture

Context:

Kerala’s rich heritage faces threats from modernization, migration, and natural disasters.
Citizen-led movements are emerging to preserve cultural legacies.
Kannur City Heritage Foundation, Preserve Alleppey Society (PAS), Kochi Heritage Project and Vayali Collective of Thrissur are among the many grassroots movements working to preserve Kerala’s unique cultural landscape.
Tourism forms 10% of Kerala’s GDP and such initiatives

Moideen Palli Mosque:

An 18th-century mosque in Kannur, near the Arakkal Palace and the Angelo Fort built by the Portuguese.
Inclusivity: Changes made to allow all visitors, breaking traditional restrictions on women and. Also, people from other religions are allowed to visit.
The change was brought about by voluntary activists who want to cherish Kannur’s historical significance as a major medieval trade centre, the seat of the ancient Mushaka kings, and a military hub for Europeans.
Architecture: Dutch-inspired arched doors, French floor tiles, Arabic hexagonal cone-topped minarets, and slanted roofs typical of the state.

Vayali Collective (Thrissur):

Vayali began as a group of folk musicians passionate about preserving the oral traditions of the Bharathapuzha region.
Over time, their mission expanded to include the revival of local crafts.

Killimangalam pulppaya:

It is a traditional mat woven from kora grass that grows wild along the Bharathapuzha.
The mat had won the UNESCO Seal of Excellence in 2006
However, artisans at Kora Grass Weaving Society were struggling and on the verge of shutting down. Only one woman, Prabhavathi, in her late 60s, was still weaving.
The Vayali collective produced a documentary, Magic Weavers of Killimangalam, which garnered national and international attention, and pushed for the central government to include the craft under its ‘Vanishing Traditions of India’
Vayali is currently working towards securing a Geographical Indication (GI) tag for the mat.

Pokkali rice:

A traditional saltwater-tolerant variety of rice grown organically in the coastal regions of Kerala, especially in the Alleppey district.
Pokkali is a system in which the farming alternates between rice and prawn (the fields are used alternately for rice farming and prawn and shrimp cultivation).

Alappuzha (Alleppey):

Alappuzha is a port town founded by the Travancore kingdom in the 18th century.
Celebrated as the ‘Venice of the East’ for its scenic beauty and intricate canal network.
The town was once a thriving commercial and industrial hub, renowned for coir and spices.
Preserve Alleppey Society (PAS), an all-women group has spearheaded the heritage conservation of the town.