KINKINI CHEPPU - Tales & Tidbits from Kerala with SHUBHA DAS

Season 1, Episode 7, Tholpavakoothu-Kerala’s Shadow Puppetry

In this episode of Kinkini Cheppu, we explore the story of Tholpavakoothu, Kerala’s traditional shadow puppetry art form, through the lens of this year’s World Storytelling Day theme - Light in the Dark. At the heart of this episode are two powerful narratives: * The myth of Darika and Bhadrakali, which marks the origin of Tholpavakoothu * The story of Kavalappara Moopil Nair, who helped root this art form in Kerala along the banks of the Bharathapuzha * We also briefly touch upon the living legacy of this art form through artists like Rahul Pulavar and Padmashri Ramachandra Pulavar. Tholpavakoothu is more than an art form…where stories are not just told, but illuminated. Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & Audible Plug in your earphones, grab a cup of chaya, and let’s take a trip home every fortnight. And if a story tugs at your heart, or remind you of anything or anybody, write to me at kinkinicheppuwithshubha@gmail.com [kinkinicheppuwithshubha@gmail.com] - your story might just find its way into an episode! This season is incubated at Podcasting Bootcamp - Cohort 2 by Your Story Bag.

Season 1, Episode 6, The Story of Attukal Pongala

In this episode of Kinkini Cheppu, we travel to Thiruvananthapuram to witness something extraordinary, a day when an entire city rearranges itself for women. This is Attukal Pongala, the world’s largest annual gathering of women. Every year, lakhs of women gather across the city streets with clay pots, rice, jaggery, and firewood, turning the city into the world’s largest open-air kitchen. But behind this remarkable gathering lies an ancient story. The story of Kannagi, the fearless heroine of the Tamil epic Silappathikaram, whose courage and demand for justice shook an entire kingdom. In this episode, we explore: • The lived experience of attending Attukal Pongala • The quiet sisterhood that emerges among strangers • How an entire city makes room for lakhs of women • The legend of Kannagi and her journey to Attukal • The story behind one of the most powerful women-led traditions in India Attukal Pongala is often spoken of as a religious ritual. But witnessing it up close reveals something more, a rare moment when lakhs of women gather, creating an atmosphere of shared strength, warmth, and sisterhood. Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & Audible Plug in your earphones, grab a cup of chaya, and let’s take a trip home every fortnight. And if a story tugs at your heart, or remind you of anything or anybody, write to me at kinkinicheppuwithshubha@gmail.com [kinkinicheppuwithshubha@gmail.com] - your story might just find its way into an episode! This season is incubated at Podcasting Bootcamp - Cohort 2 by Your Story Bag.

Season 1, Episode 5, The Pulluvan & the Sacred Grove

In this episode of Kinkini Cheppu, we travel to the quiet evenings of Palakkad, where lamps are lit at dusk and serpent groves breathe in silence. What begins as a childhood memory of watching a lamp being lit in a sacred grove, slowly unfolds into a deeper exploration of Kerala’s serpent worship traditions, and the community that carries this ritual forward; the Pulluvan and Pulluvati. Through personal memory and lived experience, this episode reflects on: * The tradition of lighting lamps in sacred groves (sarpa kaavu) * The role of women in serpent worship rituals * The elaborate kalam drawings used in sarpam thullal * The unique instruments - pulluvan veena and pulluvan kudam * The origin legend of the Pulluvan community * The quiet link between serpent worship and ecological preservation In many Kerala communities, lineage flows through daughters, and ritual responsibility is carried forward through women and their families, holding space between home, land and belief. As Women’s Day approaches, this episode gently reflects on inherited strength. Listen in for a layered journey into Kerala folklore and living indigenous traditions. Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & Audible Plug in your earphones, grab a cup of chaya, and let’s take a trip home every fortnight. And if a story tugs at your heart, or remind you of anything or anybody, write to me at kinkinicheppuwithshubha@gmail.com [kinkinicheppuwithshubha@gmail.com] - your story might just find its way into an episode! This season is incubated at Podcasting Bootcamp - Cohort 2 by Your Story Bag.

Season 1, Episode 4, The Love Legend of the Idukki Arch Dam

What if one of Kerala’s greatest engineering marvels was also born from a love story? In this episode, we travel to the misty hills of Idukki, Kerala, to uncover the legend behind the iconic Idukki Arch Dam, a story that blends folklore, memory and the brilliance of human minds. Long before powerhouses and hydroelectric dreams, the land held another kind of story, the love story of Kuravan and Kurathi, a tale from Kerala folklore that speaks of devotion, separation and hope across time. As Valentine’s Day approaches, this episode explores a different kind of love story, not roses and grand gestures, but a love that refused to give up, even when time stretched endlessly between them. We pause at: * The Idukki Arch Dam, one of Asia’s earliest and highest arch dams * The story of Chemban Kolumban, the tribal chief linked to the site * The towering Kuravan & Kurathi statues at Ramakkalmedu, sculpted by C.B. Jinan Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & Audible Plug in your earphones, grab a cup of chaya, and let’s take a trip home every fortnight. And if a story tugs at your heart, or remind you of anything or anybody, write to me at kinkinicheppuwithshubha@gmail.com [kinkinicheppuwithshubha@gmail.com] - your story might just find its way into an episode! This season is incubated at Podcasting Bootcamp - Cohort 2 by Your Story Bag.

Season 1 , Episode 3 , The Story of Theruvath Palli

In this episode of Kinkini Cheppu, I, Shubha Das, take you on a trip to a small village in Palakkad, Kerala, and into the story of Theruvath Palli, a story rooted in faith, folklore, and gratitude. As I peel back the layers of a childhood memory, I find myself tugging at a vital thread in the cultural fabric of Palakkad, a story that’s more than 500-years-old, that has survived the changing tides of time. Step onto the red oxide verandah with me as we uncover the story of a place where the boundaries of religion dissolve into the rhythm of the Chenda Melam, and where communal harmony isn't just a word, but a lived experience. ------- Kinkini Cheppu – Tales & Tidbits from Kerala The word Kinkini refers to tiny trinkets that tinkle, while Cheppu is a treasure chest of keepsakes and memories. Thus, Kinkini Cheppu is a podcast that brings to you stories that holds Kerala together through its folklore, myths, legends, rituals, traditions, practices, poems, proverbs, cultural quirks and some personal stories, wrapped in nostalgia, humour and a mix of vernacular Malayalam and English. If you are wondering why vernacular or why bi-lingual? Because for many of us, our connection to Kerala comes in glimpses - summer vacations, festive gatherings, the occasional craving for pazham pori, puttu-kadala or kerala porotta. But when we try to dig deeper, we often find these stories locked away in formal, literary Malayalam, just out of reach. This podcast is for those of us who want to reconnect with Kerala, not through textbooks, but through the stories that feel like home. Whether you’re a city-bred Malayalee, a non-resident Malayalee missing home, or someone simply curious about Kerala’s rich cultural tapestry, Kinkini Cheppu is your bridge—one tale at a time. So, plug in your earphones, grab a cup of chaya, and let’s take a trip home - one story at a time. And if these stories tug at your heart? Make you nostalgic? Or remind you of anything or anybody, write to me at kinkinicheppuwithshubha@gmail.com [kinkinicheppuwithshubha@gmail.com]. Share your thoughts, memories, or even a story passed down in your family. Who knows? It might just find its way into an episode. This season of Kinkini Cheppu is incubated at Podcasting Bootcamp - Cohort 2 by Your Story Bag.