Layering gives cultures rich vibrancy: Biennale seminar on Creolization
Thrissur / November 8, 2025
Thrissur, Nov 8: Layers of acquired heritage keep redefining the complexions of civilisations to the extent of giving them a completely new public impression in contemporary times, a seminar by the Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF) noted.
Muziris, for instance, flourished as a trade hub in the 1st century CE before evolving into a pilgrim centre towards the end of that millennium under the rule of the Perumals, but is today renowned as a heritage tourism site, speakers noted at a discussion on ‘Creolization’, in the run-up to the sixth edition of Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB-6) beginning next month.
Not much has changed in the profile of Kochi since it emerged as a natural port in 1341, following a tsunami-like calamity that flooded the Periyar River, experts noted at a three-hour seminar at Christ College in Irinjalakuda, 22 km south of the city. The event on Friday, which was part of KBF’s Outreach programme, came second in the series curated by art scholar Keli Ramachandran.
Illustrator-writer Bony Thomas, one of the founding members and trustees at the KBF, which is organising the 109-day art festival starting on December 12, noted that the twin towns of Fort Kochi and Mattancherry, spanning a mere 4.5 sq. km area, have more than 30 communities speaking 18 languages. These people trace their ancestry to different parts of the country, even while their spoken language seamlessly blends with the local Malayalam.
“This coastal pocket has 40 religious structures housing no less than 50 gods and goddesses of a range of faiths. The social harmony has always been exemplary,” he noted in the talk on ‘Kochi: A Cultural Creole’ before a gathering of predominantly students and teachers of the Department of English & History (Double Main). “West Kochi is the world’s only region that was ruled successively by three global powers: the Portuguese (1503-1663), Dutch (1663-1795) and the British (1795-1947).”
Drawing special attention to the famed Chinese fishing nets that have become synonymous with Kochi, Bony said the fixed installations by the shore have “nothing to do” with the East Asian nation’s prefix they bear. “The large cantilevered structures have their parts carrying names that belong to the Portuguese language, though similar nets are found in oriental countries such as Macau and Vietnam,” he revealed.
Bony’s PowerPoint presentation gave brief descriptions about a rich range of cultures that West Kochi and its nearby islands showcase in architecture, cuisine and hospitality. In fact, the Dutch gifted India with its first civic body by setting up a municipal office in 1664, he pointed out. Today, the area comes under the larger Kochi Corporation.
Language scholar Prof. Adarsh C., in his presentation on ‘Muziris: A Cultural Creole’, cited examples of loan words in Malayalam, linking their origins to the region's interactions with traders from Persia, Greece, Rome, the Middle East, North Africa, and China. He also spoke of the influences of Buddhism, Jainism and Judaism besides Christianity and Islam in Kerala’s eclecticism amid its overarching Hindu culture.
In response to a question from the audience, Prof. Adarsh said that the age-old Kondungallur Bharani songs draw their literature from sexual activity that was considered a good omen ahead of sowing seeds in the fields. “Originally, you cannot term the lyrics as vulgar,” he added.
Curator Keli Ramachandran, in his inaugural address, said the series, titled ‘Art…Time…Conflict’, sought to highlight the revolutionary movements that have taken forward cultures by leaps and bounds.
Christ College Principal, Fr. Dr Jolly Andrews, presided. Local historian Dr Sinto Konkath delivered a prefatory address, while felicitations were offered by the college’s Self-Financing Programs Coordinator, Dr T. Vivekanandhan, IQAC Coordinator Dr Shinto K.G., and Department of Economics (Unaided) Coordinator Prof Bose P.R. Department of English & History Coordinator Dr George Alex welcomed the gathering, while his colleague Ashna K. Asok proposed thanks.
KMB-6 has its artworks curated by Nikhil Chopra with HH Art Spaces, Goa. The show will run until March 31, 2026. The KBF is a 2010-registered non-profit charitable trust.
ENDS
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