Biennale: Kochi-Muziris 2012

On December 12, the Chief Minister of Kerala would formally inaugurate the Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2012 at the historic Parade Grounds at Fort Cochin. This would be India’s first Biennale. There was a Triennale at Delhi in 1968, but that was a one shot affair. The Kochi-Muziris 2012 would open the world of art and culture to tens of thousands of people from many countries.

Biennale technically means an art exhibition held every two years. It started in Venice in 1895. The words Thierry Raspail used about the 11^th Biennale at de Lyon fits Kochi-Muziris 2012 (Kochi is likely to be better known to people outside Kerala as Cochin) as well - “a kind of gigantic show window for all the best art at the moment.” Additionally, it reflects the history of at least three millennia.

There is also the cultural and historic aspect. The event would include the presentation of a number of traditional performing art forms, literary gatherings and an International Book Fair too. It is not surprising that Kochi-Muziris 2012 has been listed by The New York Times and British Airways Journal as one of the major global events of the year.

The label Kochi-Muziris has great significance. Muziris, in recent years known as Kodumgalloor in Malayalam and Craganore in English, died in the process of Kochi being born.  That was in 1341. Till then Muziris, about 30kms north of Kochi, was one of the most important harbours of the world. People from the East and the West came there for trading.

Author: Christophe cagé

There are claims that teakwood for King Solomon’s palace went from Muziris. (Whether Solomon really existed is another matter.) Spices from the Malabar Coast were indispensable in the cuisine of the upper class, particularly in the West. The Semites probably had the advantage in the westward trade. They might have known of the direct trade wind across the Arabian Sea before others became aware of it as Hippalus Wind in 45-47 CE.

Several foreigners who came for commerce settled in and around Muziris. It is generally believed that St. Thomas the Apostle landed in Muziris in 52 CE to spread the Word of Jesus Christ. This date appears to have been before Gentiles were admitted to Christianity. Even the word Christian had not been coined then. Some historians mention that the Apostle preached at the synagogues in Malabar.

Apparently there was a sizable Jewish population in Kerala at the beginning of the Christian era. Those converted by St. Thomas and their descendants came to be called Nazranees. There was another large scale migration of Jews to the Malabar Coast during Titan’s siege of Jerusalem in 70 CE. Many Arabs too had families in Kerala.

This flourishing port of Muziris became defunct in 1341 CE. There are different theories about this. One is that natural silting over the years closed the shipping channels. The other is that heavy floods in River Periyar deposited huge quantities of sand and debris making the port unusable. A third and probably the more likely possibility is that some geophysical occurrence in the sea closed Muziris and opened the connection to the Vembanad Lake at Kochi, making it a safe natural harbour.

PHGCOM India-Rome trade route map.

Envisioning the possibilities of the new port, an alert Perumpadappu Swaroopam (Cochin Royal Family) shifted the capital to near Kochi in 1405. The area started growing into an important international trade centre. A community of Jews moved in. (See: One more Cochini Jew Bids Adieu ) Then came the Portuguese, Dutch and the English. The Arabs were mostly concentrated at Calicut in the north of Kerala. But people from other parts of India like the Gujaratis too settled in Kochi. (See: Kerala: Sand from the lakes)

Raja of Cochin

The Dutch capturing Cochin Harbour from 

Portuguese in 1663.

A view of Cochin in early 19c

English sail ship MALABAR

Paddy fields and coconut groves

A backwater scene.

An old painting of Chinese Net for which

Cochin is famous.

It was against this historical background that the Biennale was named Kochi-Muziris 2012. Originally, the idea of the show was given active support by MA Baby who was the Minister for Culture in the earlier Left-led Kerala Government. He was successful in forming a lead team of government officials, artists and other prominent persons. The Kerala Government also sanctioned funding of Rs.5 crores.

But in Kerala, the land of Raja Ravi Varma, nothing is beyond dispute. Some of the local artists are miffed because they were not included in organizing the Biennale. The media appears to have played it up without studying the details. All that led to the stoppage of government funding.

The Foundation that is managing the Biennale is feeling financial tightness. But there is personal funding. Private benefactors and galleries are also helping. It is only fair that the government conducts a proper enquiry quickly, publicize the findings, and resumes financial assistance.

Perhaps it is not too late for the local artists who feel ignored to get involved in this great effort. KC Joseph, the Minister for Culture who has said that the Government is all set to make the event a success, and Tony Chammani, the Mayor of Cochin can play a major part in bringing everyone together.

This is what Dr. Manmohan Sigh, the Prime Minister said about Kochi-Muziris 2012, “The jewel in the crown of Kerala will now earn prominence thanks to this event, which is aimed at promoting art from across the globe.”

The publicity for the project could have been possibly done more effectively, but there is no doubt that the Biennale would be a great success. It will have a major commercial impact as well. The important venues of the event are Aspinwall House, Pepper House, David Hall and Durbar Hall, all historic locations of Kochi.

Kelly Crow, Art Reporter of Wall Street Journal has tweeted, “FINALLY! India will debut its own contemporary-art biennial called the Kochi-Muziris Biennale on Dec.12 in Kochi, Kerala area.”

The show will be on till 13-03-2013.

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Note: All images are from Wikimedia Commons. Some have been edited. CLICK to enlarge.

The Savita case, a tragedy in Ireland

A man takes his wife and their young son boating. The boat capsizes in deep waters. The man is a good swimmer but his wife and son can’t swim. The husband can save only one of them. The question here is who should be given the preference. If a decision is delayed, both would drown.

Was it something like this that happened in Ireland last month?   

Click here to read on...

Kerala High Court on alcohol policy

Two recent suggestions by the Kerala High Court have become the major talking point in the State. One is that bars should open only at 5 in the afternoon. Lunch time drinkers and those who go to office after some stiff ones certainly won’t like this. But the main point of contention is an earlier observation of the HC to stop toddy tapping and replace that drink with beer.

Keralites celebrated Onam this year with liquor worth Rs.100 crores from the State owned Beverages Corporation. This does not include bar sales, liquor consumption at parties, illicit and smuggled drinks and toddy. (According to senior journalist Vechuchira Madhu nearly 9 million litres of spirits are smuggled into Kerala annually from neighboring states.) God’s Own Country reportedly spends more money on liquor than on rice.

The reactions of different sectors to HC’s toddy to beer suggestion show how strange people can be. One leftist trade union leader claimed that the idea was to break up the toddy taper’s union which CPI (M) controls. The Muslim League welcomed the idea. The Ezhava community which has deep involvement in the toddy business and is a large vote bank, immediately protested that the League’s plan was to hurt them.

The State’s Congress Chief stated that toddy was a healthy drink and the Government would never ban that business. The Excise Minister reacted that the court cannot tell the people what to drink.  

Why did the HC make such a view about toddy? Successive governments have failed to ensure the supply of pure and hygienic toddy. What is being sold in most of the 5000 toddy shops in the State is not the pure stuff. It is said that many toddy shops provide a concoction made with ammonia, ash gourd and some other ingredients including a bit of real toddy for the flavor. There may be other recipes as well. Sometimes arrack which is prohibited in the State is added for greater kick.

Kerala sells 2.9 lakh litres more of toddy per day than what it can produce! About 3.15 lakh coconut trees are tapped in the State. The maximum quantity of toddy that is obtainable from a tree is 1.5 litres a day. That works out to about 4.73 lakh litres. The daily sale is said to be 7.64 lakh litres. Where does the balance come from? There is no import of this item from other States.

Now let us come to Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL), the labelled stuff. By opening the bars only at 5 p.m., some reduction in alcohol consumption can be expected. But the bars account for only 21% of the daily sales. It seems impractical to open the Beverages Corporation outlets also only at 5 p.m. The rush would be considerable.  

What seems important to me is to analyze where the bottles from the shops - mind you, 79% of the total quantity – are taken. Drinking at public places (like the road side), hotel/club rooms and houses of ill-repute cannot be much. One report says that there are over 600 unlicensed bars in the State. They could account for a considerable quantity. Nevertheless it would appear that most of the liquor is drunk at home, either with friends or alone.

Some friends gathering at the same house everyday to drink is unlikely. Mostly it would be the man drinking alone. In some cases the wife might also join. According to statistics, 5% of Indian women drink. In Kerala it could be more. But in many cases the women do oppose the husbands drinking and often not too tactfully.

This is perhaps a deficiency of the several awareness programmes (which have all failed) aimed at the reduction of alcohol consumption. Instead of picketing toddy shops or fighting with the husband about his drinking, why not make it pleasant for the man if he wants to drink at home? It could possibly reduce the quantity he consumes.

Domestic violence is often projected as one of the nasty sides of drinking. But the situation is not too bad. We have fewer problems in this area than some of the Western countries. A 1997 survey in Switzerland showed 20% of their women faced domestic violence. The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) confirms that cruelty by husbands has increased in Kerala from 9.8 in 2004 to 11.8 in 2007 while the National average remains at 5.3.  Surprisingly around 60% of Kerala women seem to believe that their husbands have the right to beat them.

Alcohol and Drug Information Centre claims that 80% of the increasing number of divorces in Kerala State are linked to alcohol consumption. But the numbers are not high and mostly the problem is related to the money spent on bottles and temporary sexual inadequacy caused by heavy consumption. No woman would like her gold to be sold to finance drinking or go through the nightmare of sleeping with the drunken husband.

The most shocking situation in Kerala is that even though the legally stipulated minimum age for drinking is 21, school children have openly started hitting the bottle. TV channels were recently showing pictures of boys in school uniforms in the queues at Beverages Corporation outlets. No one there seemed to bother.

Well, that is how it goes. Dr. Thomas Isaac, the Finance Minister in the previous government, once said: “Am I happy that liquor consumption is going up? No never. But it's an assured source of revenue for the government. And even if I don't collect it, there will still be consumption of liquor". Imposing prohibition or increasing the price of alcohol will only help moonshiners and the corrupt persons.

Perhaps the solution lies with the women. A smart, pleasant wife would be able to induce her husband to be at home in the evenings, keep him happy and attempt to make him consume less liquor. Awareness programmes on these lines should be organized for the ladies. That might help.

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