Tamil Nadu - Cuddalore   

`Neithal' set to enthral young and old alike

A.V. Ragunathan

Summer fete at Silver Beach begins today

The specially designed logo for the Silver Beach summer festival at Cuddalore.

CUDDALORE: This year, the five-day annual summer festival commencing on Wednesday (May 23) at Silver Beach in Cuddalore will be a unique occasion on two counts.

For, the district administration has decided to give it a distinct flavour by designing a logo, a la Kerala and Goa. The logo carries the symbols of a folk artist, a coconut tree with its foliage touching the drifting clouds in the background of the blue waters of the Bay of Bengal.

The festival has been rightly named as "Neithal," a Tamil term that means sea and the nearby areas.

According to Collector Rajendra Ratnoo, the logo would give a brand image to the festival and would have an immediate appeal to the visitors.

Mr. Ratnoo is keen on fostering the folk arts and hence, a series of folk events have been lined up for the fete. It would also be a refreshing change from the much-touted cinema-based programmes, and would also enthuse the folk artists to stick on to their traditional pursuits.

Public Relations Officer M.R. Lingam, who is coordinating the event, says the Tamil Nadu Cultural Centre would bring folk artists from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka who would perform at the venue from 4.30 p.m. to 11 p.m., every day.

Sand sculptures

The highlights of the programmes would be sand sculptures, boat race, beach volleyball, healthy baby contest and dog show. The fete would begin with the invocation from the students of the Government Music School and the band troupe from the Juvenile Home.

Just before the inauguration, fireworks would light up the sky above the beach. An added attraction would be the boat yard established at the beach at a cost of Rs. 25 lakh to provide joy ride in the backwaters.

Though the Silver Beach and the Thevanampattinam coastal village bore the major brunt of the 2004 tsunami, there are no traces of devastation now. With the heat wave sweeping Cuddalore and summer vacation in place, the Silver Beach has now emerged as a major tourist destination.

Special buses

The children's park equipped with swings and slides, and a host of vendors purveying a variety of eatables add to the festive mood. An exhibition that has come up there will showcase the achievements of various government departments. Special buses would ply to the venue from the main bus stand till the end of the events.

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