We met 48-year-old Bharati Kannamma and her friend Aruna, both in dazzling bridal costumes and full of smiles, outside the temple. We had met Kannamma at Villupuram also but at Koovagam, she looked visibly happy and excited.
She has been coming to Koovagam since 1979. "There were only a few hundred then but today, you see thousands and thousands of people. We don't have any other day to celebrate except this one. So, all of us look forward to this day," she said.
She is Bharati Kannamma only these two days in a year. Otherwise, she leads the life of a man, as Alokraj. "I am stifling inside. Now you know why people like me look forward to the Koovagam festival," she said.
Kannamma is an economics graduate and fluent at many languages, including English. Till recently, he earned a good salary at a good company.
Now that his family duties as the eldest son are over, he has decided to work for an NGO.
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