The pulsating beats of Gangamma Jatara!

Thathayagunta Gangamma Jatara: A vibrant, centuries-old folk festival in Tirupati with colorful traditions, dance, and devotion.

The beats of the native percussion instruments and devotees dancing to the rhythm are at the heart of the Thathayagunta Gangamma Jatara, a centuries-old annual folk festival of Tirupati full of colour, rhythm and devotion that transforms the temple town.

At the jatara and one that often surprises outsiders is the striking way people dress. Devotees arrive at the temple smeared in charcoal, lime paste, vermilion, sandalwood paste, and with neem leaves covering their bodies.

There is another interesting practice followed during the festival; some devotees wear tiny garlands of flowers fashioned into a crown on their heads, and wield a stick. On the final day, a more dramatic visual can be seen. Devotees cross-dress, paying homage to the goddess, a major attraction. This tradition was recently highlighted in the blockbuster film ‘Pushpa: The Rule.’

Another traditional art form that one gets to see on the penultimate day is the ‘Puli Vesham.’ This is the most anticipated event. Artistes’ dressed in special tiger costumes, with black stripes drawn with charcoal across their bodies arrive at the temple. These ‘tiger’ artistes enact the ‘Puli Vesham’ fight scenes— where the ‘tiger’ attacks and kills a human. This art form is performed to the unique rhythm of the drum beats. It is a theatrical display of ‘divine’ and drama at the same time.

Selfie era

In earlier times, dancing through the streets to pay respect to the deity, transcended age, social status and gender. However, over a period of time, as people became more conscious, the tradition began to wane under the garb of ‘etiquette.’

In the past, the elders would lament the decline of traditional art forms. But, the digital age, and selfie era has sparked a revival bringing back the old traditions and customs, as ‘Gen Z’ devotees armed with smartphones and selfie sticks are once again dancing their way to the temple to put up the videos on social media. Scroll through social media sites during the festival period and one can get to see a large collection of videos uploaded as Instagram reels, YouTube shorts and Facebook stories that capture the youth dancing to the pulsating beats of the folk drums.