The festival season is hotting up in Kerala and where on earth do all the Hindu Temples go to get the sacred Elephants they need to paint and decorate to take part in all of the action? As it so happens they can pop down to their local Elephant dealership where for a suitable sum they can hire them for the day, a bit like a car, only with more poo.
We took a tour out to the Elephant Training Centre where young Elephants are taught the finer skills of being involved in a festival procession. Well, in actual fact only the male Elephants take part in festivals, the females are used for logging instead. In the Elephant world, as in the human world, it is the vain guys who swan about the place trying to look good whilst the girls do all the hard work!
A very early start and a long drive is required to fit in with the Elephants busy schedule. They take their baths early in the morning and this is the highlight of their day, and ours.
It is sad to see them in chains, their back legs tethered to each other. I could get all sentimental and judgmental about it but refrain from doing so. This is hundreds of years of cultural tradition at play here and who am I to question a different way of life, besides, if one of the Elephants did decide to have a temper tantrum it is reassuring to know that they will have a hard time catching me...
Later on this month I hope to be able to show you some pictures of an actual festival, for now you will just have to be content with the action taking place in the makeup room as they get themselves ready for the big day.
Hi Rich, I wondered if Jude had a hand in this one unless you have gone over entirely to the dark side denouncing an ages old pattern of the wimmin' doing all the menial tasks. I hold a copy of a programme on Channel 4 Kevin McLeod in the main slum in Mumbai... apoint well made there.
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I forgot to say, good elephant photographs, no excellent.
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