I attended a Sony Alpha Workshop in February this year that took me to Payyanur in Kerala.
Titled ‘The Dance of the Gods,’ this five-day tour was part of the Sony Alpha photography course and gave participants a view of Theyyam’s mesmerizing worship artform.
Renowned photographer Dheeraj Paul (https://www.instagram.com/dheerajpaul_india/) was our mentor and guide for this Sony Photography tour.
Over the five days, we went to various temples and houses during the day and night to witness different kinds of Theyyam performances.
The night-time performances involving fire and breath-taking heroics and dance by the performers gave us a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
What is Theyyam?
Theyyam derives its name from the word daivam, which means God in Malayalam.
This art form is practiced mainly in northern Kerala and some parts of Karnataka. Theyyam performances bring epic tales from northern Kerala to life.
There are more than 400 different types of Theyyams across northern Kerala and Karnataka.
Theyyam season starts towards the end of October and lasts until May or June, and the performances happen between dusk and dawn.
Here are a few pictures I clicked during the photo tour:
You can view more pictures I shot during this photography tour on my Instagram channel. Here: https://www.instagram.com/sampathmk/
Here’s my Amazon affiliate link to the equipment I used for shooting the pictures above: https://amzn.to/4hrwr6h
Let me know if you want high-quality prints of any of the photos above, and I will see what I can do.
I made a video of the tour, which you can watch here:
If you wish to experience the brilliant art form of Theyyam while getting mentored by an ace photographer, you can check out the tour conducted as part of the Sony Alpha photography course here: https://alphacommunity.in/photo-tours/86/the-dance-of-the-gods-the-mesmerizing-theyyam-of-kerala-a-guided-photography-by-dheeraj-paul/
Have you witnessed Theyyam? I would love to know your thoughts. Please drop your comments below.