Others may have come by bus or bullock cart. And there are many who have come in their own cars carrying their entire families, maid servants, children, toys and all. All of them are standing in the open ground braving the sun, sweating profusely. There is an eagerness on their faces and a trace of impatience. Suddenly there is a hush.
Warm smiles spread and every- one is peering forward.
The procession they have longed to see has started. A hundred caparisoned elephants in a row in an illusory forward movement appear. The golden headdresses of the tuskers glitter in the sun, sending a thrill into the men, women and children gathered there. A hundred or more drummers are lined up in front of this glittering fortress of tuskers. The chenta, the drump par excellence of Kerala leads the melam.