The Attukal Pongala at the Attukal Bhagavathy temple in Thiruvanathapuram was successfully held on Saturday the 3rd March , 2007.Thousands of female devotees like every year arrived from all over Kerala ( and even overseas) to offer Pongala to the deity. The Pongala which marks the culmination of the 10 day festival held annually at the temple is one of its kind and may be one of the largest all women gatherings in the world. "Pongala" is made with rice, jaggery, coconut, nuts and raisins and is offered to thedeity who is known as "Attukalamma". All roads on Saturday were leading to the Attukal Bhagavathy temple. The place was bustling with activity from the early hours of dawn as thousands of devotees came with their firewood , earthen pots and ingredients to find a place for themselves in the long serpentine queue. The beginning was marked with the temple priest lighting the ceremonial hearth (at 10.45 am) from which all the fires of the devotees were lit. The film and television fraternity were not to be left out in this mega event . Actresses like Kalaranjini, Kalpana(who are regulars every year), Poornima Mohan , Ambika and Radha were there to make their offerings to the deity. The mother of cricketer Sreesanth was also there to pray for the success of her son as well as that of the Indian team. Managing the huge inflow into Thiruvanathapuram and the outflow in the evening was a Herculean task. Traffic jams and blocks were experienced at many places due to the large number of people who were leaving the city. The Attukal Pongala festival like every year was a huge success and all devotees returned home satisfied with the blessings of the Attukal Bhagavathy. via: onamfestival Image credit: kerala-travel-tours