K M Dayashankar
KARIMNAGAR, JULY 20, 2024: Students of Advita International School, Bhagathnagar, Karimnagar town, celebrated the annual ‘Bonalu’ festival of the Ashadam month with religious fervour and gaiety on their school campus on Saturday.
The school was colourfully decorated with flowers, neem and mango leaves and the girl students have arrived in their best attire. It was all riot of colour, customs, traditions and dance. It was ‘poonakalu’ (trance) loading as the girl students donning the role of ‘Ammoru’ danced in a frenzied manner to the rhythmic beats of traditional folk songs of Mahankali jatara.
Besides, the potharajus role donned by the boy students was also a special attraction with their dance sequences by smearing with turmeric and vermillion on their body and wearing lemons garland. The students in their traditional attire carried ‘Bonam’, a new earthen pot containing the rice cooked with turmeric, which acts as anti-biotic, and nutritional jaggery and milk and decorated with neem leaves, on their heads in a procession led by Potharajus amid drum beats.
Celebrations were launched by School Director Sowgani Anudeep by lighting the lamp. On this occasion, he enlightened the students about the importance of celebrating the ‘bonalu’ festival in the Telangana state to appease Goddess for the wellbeing and health of the society. Faculty members were also present.
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