Foreigners captivated by Alanganallur jallikattu

Foreign tourists captivated by jallikattu event in Alanganallur during Pongal celebrations, experiencing Tamil culture and tradition.

For foreign tourists, it was a whole new experience at Alanganallur in Madurai district, as they were there to witness the famous jallikattu event.

Tourists from the US, the UK, Australia, France, Belgium, Austria, Brazil and other countries had registered to watch the event as part of Pongal celebrations organised by Tamil Nadu Tourism. For a couple of the tourists, it was their second time at Alanganallur. Captivated by the bull taming sport, they were back to witness it once again. The tourists enthusiastically clicked pictures of the event from the gallery.

French Photojournalist Jean Francois Mutzig said that he was fascinated by jallikattu and the valour on display at the event. The bond between man and animal was a subject he was interested in and he has captured the relationship shared between man and animals, particularly elephants.

He was so captivated by jallikattu, he said that he would return to Alanganallur in the future to study, research and document the event and the relationship between man and bulls like he did with man and elephants. He was there at the event with his team Les Cliches De L’aventure.

French couple Adrien and Elodie, who were into farming back home, said they were at Alanganallur as part of Pongal celebrations. They had learnt that Pongal was the festival of harvest. A devotee dressed as Karuppanasamy applied vibhuti on the forehead of the tourists as enquired about the deity near the temple at Alanganallur.

Tourist Officer S.M. Sribalamurugan of Tamil Nadu Tourism said that around 150 foreign tourists registered for the event. However, more than 200 foreign tourists watched the jallikattu event.

On January 15, the foreign tourists were presented with a slice of Tamil culture and tradition at Kalaignar Centenary Jallikattu Arena in Keezhakarai near Alanganallur. They were accorded a warm welcome at the venue. They watched the artistes perform traditional art forms, prepared pongal and relished it. The foreign tourists also drew colourful kolams with the local residents.