Chennai Sangamam is a large annual open Tamil

Tamil people

Tamil people , also called Tamils or Tamilians, are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, India and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. Historic and post 15th century emigrant communities are also found across the world, notably Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, South Africa, Australia, Canada,...

 cultural festival held in the city of Chennai

Chennai

Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...

. The festival is organized by the Tamil Maiyam and Department of Tourism and Culture of the Government of Tamil Nadu

Government of Tamil Nadu

The Government of Tamil Nadu, headquartered at Chennai is the governing authority for the Indian State of Tamil Nadu. It is seated at the Fort St. George...

 with the intention of rejuvenating the old village festivals, art and artists. The festival is centered around the occasion of Tamil harvest festival of Pongal

Pongal

Thai Ponggal is a harvest festival celebrated by Tamils in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, Indian Union Territory of Pondicherry and in Sri Lanka. Pongal coincides with the festival Makara Sankranthi celebrated throughout India. Pongal in Tamil means "boiling over" or "spill over". The boiling...

, and takes place for a week long period. The festival is conceived to be the longest and biggest open Festival in India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

.

History

The idea of organizing a festival during Pongal showcasing the culture of Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...

 was conceived by Kanimozhi

Kanimozhi

Kanimozhi Karunanidhi , a politician, poet and journalist. She is a Member of Parliament, representing Tamil Nadu in the Rajya Sabha...

, Member of Parliament from Tamil Nadu and daughter of M Karunanidhi and Rev.Fr. Jegath Gaspar Raj, founder of Tamil Maiyam, in September 2006. The festival was rolled out in 2007, with patronization of the Government of Tamil Nadu.

Festival description

The festival is organized at various places in Chennai including beaches, parks, corporation grounds, college / school grounds and shopping malls. The idea to have it in the open parks, beaches and streets was an inspiration from the Bangaluru Habba celebrations. The events that mark the festival include traditional and folk music shows folk dances, martial arts, classical music and dance performances, street plays, drama / theater, etc. Apart from these, food component got added in the second edition of Chennai Sangamam in 2008 where food outlets catering traditional Tamil cuisine

Tamil cuisine

Tamil Nadu is famous for its hospitality and its deep belief that serving food to others is a service to humanity, as is common in many regions of India. The region has a rich cuisine involving both traditional vegetarian, as well as non-vegetarian dishes. It is characterized by the use of rice,...

also became part of the celebrations. More than 2,000 performers take part in the event which accommodates around 4,000 performances annually.