Thrissur Pooram 2024

Largest and most famous of all Poorams, the Thrissur Pooram is held at the Vadukkannathan Swamy temple of Kerala every year in April - May. This annual Hindu temple festival of Kerala is held for a week in the month of Medam according to the Malayalam calendar. It was first held during the reign of Raja Ravi Varma, the Maharaja of Cochin and popularly known as Sakthan Thampuran. A unity of 10 temples that are ordained as two groups namely Thiruvambady and Paramekkavu, brings a large festivity to life with a display of innovative fireworks and elephant caparisons. Being considered as the largest festival in Asia that's secular in nature, Thrissur Pooram is a festival that's a must see.

The temple-festival falls in the month of Medam of the traditional Malayali calendar, on the day when Pooram star witnesses the rising moon. Being observed according to the Malayalam calendar, which is varied from the Christian calendar, the dates for the observance of the festival varies each year regarding dates and months of the commonly followed Christian calendar. Though the month of Medam generally falls in April or May, it is still a task for the worshippers to look for dates, just like Muslims before observing the festival of Eid, before deliberating for attending the festival.

The festival commences with a flag hoisting ceremony, accompanied by fireworks that last all night, a week before the main celebration day.

Thrissur Pooram 2024 Timings & Venue

The celebration takes place at the Vadakkunnathan temple which is located at a hammock at the centre of the city of Thrissur in Kerala. A temple built in the typical architectural design of the state, it attracts devotees as well as people who visit for the sake of discovering the beauty of the festival.

Thrissur Pooram 2024 Schedule - Exhibition, Kudamattom & Vedikettu

Some events, mainly three, constitute the completion of the festival of Thrissur Pooram.

Kudamattom

Elephants - lots of them, and highly adorned ones - mark the event of the Kudamattom ceremony, which is a central part of the week-long festivity. The term 'Kudamattom' comes from two root words, 'Kuda' meaning Umbrella and 'Mattom' meaning Change. Thus the ceremony displays a competition of changing colorful canopied umbrellas from above the adorned elephants between two teams, namely, Thiruvambady and Paramekkavu.

Ilanjithara Melam

Another event, known as the Ilanjithara Melam, occurs near the Ilanji tree in the Vadakkunnathan temple's courtyard. It includes the beating of traditional percussions in which many devotees perform, making it a major festival attraction with their captivating rhythm. 

Madathil Vararu

The event of Madathil Vararu marks the deities, Thiruvambadi Devi and Lord Krishna, taken out in a procession from their temple to the Vadakkunnathan temple, accompanied by an ocean of followers, with traditional instruments played all along.

How to Reach Vadakunnathan Swamy Temple

The nearest railway station to the Sri Vadakkunnathan Shiva temple is the Thrissur Railway Station, which is only about two kilometers away from the site. However, the nearest airport to the location, Cochin International Airport, is around sixty kilometers away.

Thrissur Pooram History

Thrissur Pooram has a history of almost two hundred years, returning to the reign of Raja Rama Varma, aka Sakthan Thampuran. The festival carries and continues on the legacy of the erstwhile Arattupuzha Pooram festival, which was just a day-long event. Raja Rama Varma started the celebration of Thrissur Pooram with the united agreement of ten temples located around the Vadakkunnathan temple. Since then, all these temples have visited the Vadakkunnathan with their deities to pay respect to this manifestation of Lord Siva, not to mention the large number of visitors from the state and across the country that it attracts. Though official statistics are not available, arguably a torrent of five hundred thousand people gathers for the celebration.

Thrissur Pooram Video

The fact that the city of Thrissur is reputed as the cultural capital of Kerala and the grandeur of the celebration of Thrissur Pooram festival naturally appeal to people who come to know about them; a desire to witness the enormity of the solemnization and a feeling of longing is naturally felt.