Sri Lankan Airlines celebrated the festival of Onam, the national festival of Kerala with traditional ‘Onam Sadya’ and various traditional plays including Tug of War. The ‘Onam Sadya’ events were hosted in Trivandrum on September 7th at Uday Samudra Leisure Beach Hotel, Kovalam and followed in Cochin on September 9th, at Club Mahindra Resorts, Arukkutty in Alleppey with the presence of Mr Fawzan Fareid, Regional Manager – India, Bangladesh & Nepal of SriLankan Airlines, Mr Sandun Jayasinghe, Area Manager Trivandrum and Mr Prasanna Mudannayake, Area Manager Cochin with the participation of Travel Trade and Industry stakeholders of Kerala.
SriLankan Airlines had a long-standing relationship with Kerala and we are the first international airline to touch down at Thiruvananthapuram airport and also at Cochin airport, said Mr. Fawzan Fareid, Regional Manager – India, Bangladesh & Nepal of SriLankan Airlines. Millions of Malayalee passengers have travelled with us during the last four decades of our service from Kerala through our base in Colombo, to travel to various parts of the world, to fulfil their job aspirations, business travel, holiday travel, and to meet friends and relatives, especially to Arab countries, Europe, and the UK. Now many of our regular passengers are second and third-generation passengers and we are maintaining a good relationship with our world-class service and upgraded aircraft. Sri Lankan Airlines will continue our efforts to provide the best of our service to all sectors across generations.
Mr. Sandun Jayasinghe, Area Manager Trivandrum said, “We are committed to serving the people of Kerala and happy to celebrate Onam with our business counterparts and media friends from Kerala. This festive gathering will also allow us to network with our industry counterparts and potential clients. The Kerala outbound market has great potential and the cultural similarities between Keralites and Sri Lankan people are an added advantage to offering our products to international travellers from Kerala with our enchanting beaches, vibrant wildlife, artistically created forts, temples, delicious cuisines, and mesmerising nightlife offerings.
Mr Prasanna Mudannayake, Area Manager Cochin added that Sri Lankan Airlines and Sri Lankan Holidays offer various holiday packages to travellers to explore the beautiful island, which is also the closest international destination to the travellers of Kerala. We are considering Kerala as one of our prime markets from the Indian sub-continent and will strengthen this bond with more programs in the coming days.
The festival of Onam is celebrated throughout Kerala in India. Kerala during Onam is marked by happiness, excitement, and enjoyment among all sections of people. The legend behind the Onam celebration is an outcome of reasons that have to do with mythology as well as old agrarian practices. If one is to go by the myth, then King Mahabali or Maveli was a generous and virtuous ruler, who had once ruled Kerala. During his rule, the kingdom became so prosperous that devas (gods of the Heaven) felt jealous about this and also for the reason that King Mahabali was an asura – a member of the demon clan – who were the enemies of devas. So, they sent Lord Vishnu in the guise of Vamana (a dwarf) to King Mahabali. As an offering from the generous king, Vamana requested Mahabali for three feet of land. At the time of measuring the three feet of land, Vamana grew so huge that he measured all the world in two steps. Since he had nowhere else to place his third step, Mahabali asked Vamana to place it on his head. Pleased by his benevolence, Vamana blessed Mahabali before he was sent to the nether world and permitted him to visit his dear subjects once a year. This occasion is celebrated by all Keralites as Onam.
Onam is celebrated as a harvest festival, marking a time of abundance and joy across Kerala after a successful harvest. The festivities last for ten days, starting with the “Atham” asterism in the month of Chingam (August/September) according to the local calendar.
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