Vellore residents craft towering sculptures for Mayana Kollai festival

VELLORE: As the sun set on Wednesday, the land near the Palar River and the graveyard at New Bus Stand came alive with bright colours. Wearing a red bindi, 58-year-old Siva Shakthi, a resident of Old Town, carefully painted a blue shade over the massive mud structure of goddess Angalaparameshwari. Beside her, U Kishore Kumar, another resident, added red to the goddess’s features.

Across the graveyard, similar towering sculptures have been taking shape, built by residents of various neighbourhoods, including Viruthampattu, Makkan, and Thottapalayam. The heights of these sculptures range from 10 to 50 feet. They were being prepared for Thursday’s Mayana Kollai festival. Nearby, more people were cleaning the cemeteries of their loved ones and giving them a fresh coat of paint.