Technical glitches, friction at some venues, and unexpected rain that disrupted the event at the main venue, the penultimate day of the 62nd State School Arts Festival was full of drama. But none of that could erode the festive spirit as all main venues were brimming with excitement and activity on Sunday. Since the district is hosting Asia’s biggest art festival after 14 years, a lot of people were moving around, hurrying from venue to venue to get a taste of the fete.
“The festival showcased a spectrum of events and we were spoilt for choice. For us it’s a unique experience and we have been visiting the venues all these days. We don’t get to attend such large-scale events everyday,” says Cincy Paul, a resident of Nallia, who is at the festival with her husband and sister-in-law.
The drama competition (HS) at Sopanam auditorium was one major event of the day and a lot of spectators thronged the venue from morning. Though hardly half the teams had completed their performance by 6 p.m., the audience participation was commendable as Kollam is also a land of prominent theatre groups.
Rain
The events on the main venue were Bharatanatyam (HS Girls) and group dance (HS), but torrential rain played spoilsport around 5 p.m. flooding the pandal and bringing the event to a standstill. Excavators were arranged as part of damage control and a lot of effort went into clearing the area before resuming group dance.
Keralanadanam, folk dance, mono act, mimicry and group song were some other events that attracted crowds.
