Bride, Bridegroom exchange rolls for sake of 'goodness'

Madikeri (Karnataka), Mar 30: A festival called 'Pommangal' is celebrated in Birunani village at Pakerinad Shri Puthu Bhaavati temple where the main performance is the unique traditional marriage ceremony. Here, the bridegromm is dressed as bride and bride as bridegroom.This is the special attraction of the festival which is celebrated every year.

People from surrounding places in the hilly district offer this performance and believe that childless persons would be graced with kids, the problems during child birth would also be avoided and the children are protected from the attack of 'bad stars'. The Pommangal is being celebrated with ferver by hundreds of villagers wearing traditional Kodava robes at the village about 20 km from here.The performance is done by following the traditional Kodava marriages except the change of the roles by bride and bridegrooms with a different and peculiar dress.The devotees will get the best lunch as prasadam. After the mass feeding, the girl and the boy with different dress and reversed roles would go round the temple with a warm welcome from local drum beats.

After offering pooja, both of them exchange their dress from the unnatural to natural. Bridegroom and bride become original gender with suitable dresses.

UNI