BEACH VACATION

If the city can be proud of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, the first edition of the Kochi International Film Festival (KIFF) left a lot to be desired as screenings began on Sunday before the inauguration.

Organizers were conspicuously absent in the morning and theatres screening films - Saritha, Savitha, Sangeetha and Sreedhar - had no clue about film schedules with dejected fans, who were hoping to watch critically-acclaimed movies, seen in heated arguments with theatre staff. As if on cue, chief minister Oommen Chandy, who was to inaugurate the fest, also decided to skip the event.

When TOI quizzed district collector P I Sheik Pareeth, he admitted that there were some drawbacks in the organisation of the international film fest. The festival is being organized by Cochin-Gateway Entertainment Management Society (C-GEMS) in association with the district administration and Cochin Corporation. Assistant collector Gokul G R said that they would sort out all issues at the earliest.

The organizers had earlier shifted their inaugural function from Durbar Hall ground to Saritha theatre in the last minute as work at the original venue was not over.

A brochure, which seemed to be put together as an after thought, only provided information regarding the screening of films for the first three days. Sources said that organisers do not have any clue about films to be screened at the fest though they had announced a list of 70 films. "The organisation of the film fest is very poor. Nobody has any clue about the movies that will be screened hereThey could have made it a mega event by organising it efficiently," said Binoy Puthussery, an HR consultant, who came for the fest on Sunday. "The prints of many films are yet to arrive and we cannot provide information on screenings. Hopefully, all prints will arrive in the next two days from Goa and Thiruvananthapuram. We can come up with a brochure on screenings only after that," said an official associated with the fest.

The organisers also remained clueless on the participation of delegates. "We have invited many eminent people from the film industry but we are not sure how many will come for the event. All those with delegate passes will be allowed to attend the screenings," festival organizers said.

Compared to over 7,000 delegate passes issued for the recently concluded International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), around 200 people came for screenings at Savitha and Sangeetha theatres on Sunday. Sources said that the low turnout was mainly due to the poor publicity given to the event.

Screenings began at 2 pm with 'At the Horizon' at Sangeetha theatre.

The cinema theatres Saritha, Savitha, Sangeetha and Sreedhar as well as the Durbar Hall Ground will be the venues for the festival. The organisers said distribution of the delegate passes for the festival had begun at DTPC office and the at the film festival office at Children's Park. The charges for delegates pass are RS 300 and Rs 150 for students. The 7 day festival started on y esterday (16 Dec) and will end on 23 Dec.

source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kochi/Kochi-international-film-fest-gets-off-to-a-messy-start/articleshow/17644441.cms

After firmly placing stations such as Kovalam and Kumarakom on the global tourism map, the Kerala government has picked this idyllic town of beaches and backwaters as destination next for visitors to 'God's Own Country'.

The "Know Bekal" campaign to kick-off the tourism initiative in this pristine and scenic town was launched Thursday at the Vivanta by Taj resort, not far from the landmark Bekal Fort built by the Portuguese in 1640 and spread over 40 acres.
"Bekal is the next amazing destination for tourism in Kerala. Our efforts that started 17 years ago have now begun to bear fruit. Our top priority is to improve road, rail and air connectivity," Chief Minister Oomen Chandy told Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) here.

He was referring to the state-run Bekal Resorts Development Corp that was set up in 1995 with the specific task of capacity-building and infrastructure development here.
"Where else can you find beaches, backwaters and hills all within a few kilometers?" asked the chief minister, referring to the variety of options offered by this town, which has settings similar to Goa.
"Bekal received some 3.2 lakh tourists (320,000) last year. We would like the numbers to go up to more than six lakh by 2015. That is our target and our aim."
The Chief Minister also said that this resort destination was the fifth to come up under the Kerala government's drive to promote sustainable and responsible tourism -- after Kovalam, Kumarakom, Wayanad and Thekkady.

Vivanta Hotel by Taj
Otherwise on National Highway 17, less than 10 kilometre from Kasaragod in north Kerala, Bekal is also easily accessible by rail network, some eight kilometres away. The nearest airport is at Mangalore in Karnataka, 70 km north.
Talks are on with the central government to upgrade the railway station, improve the national highway and build an airstrip. To develop resorts, 230 acres were acquired and a part of it was allotted for six private projects.
"As of now, two resorts have already come up Vivanta by Taj and the Lalit Resort and Spa. Four more projects are under various stages of development," said Rani George, director of Kerala Tourism.
"Around 50 other properties in the area offer around 1,000 rooms. You also have home-stays villas and Ayurvedic centres. Accommodation will be expanded and people are welcome to invest, especially in budget hotels," George told IANS.
Detailing the major attractions in and around Bekal, she not only referred to the majestic Bekal Fort, but also those at Hosdurg and Chadragiri.
"There are also many stunning beaches, backwaters and hill stations in and around Bekal," she added.
Ancient temples and mosques, handicraft like lamps, utensils and curios made of bell metal, and preservation of rich culture like Theyyam dance form and Kalaripayattu martial arts are other attractions, George said.
Theyyam Dance in a Temple Festival, Kerala
"Most other existing resort destinations are close to urban centres and therefore over-developed. Bekal, on the other hand, is still virgin and pristine."
source: http://www.ndtv.com/article/south/bekal-is-destination-next-in-god-s-own-country-209040

 Visitors to the city zoo can now meet two cuddly three month-old leopard cubs. These male and female cubs have been garnering, “Awwws!” from the public for the past one week, romping alongside proud mom Sheena, who was born six years ago at the zoo. The cubs will remain in the nursery for one more month, after which they would be let out into an open enclosure.

Cubs are kept in close proximity, but away from the mother as the mother tends to get defensive about the cubs and attack visitors. “The first six months are crucial in a cub’s life and it is during this time that the cub learns the basic lessons of survival. The cubs have now started eating meat. We were giving chicken and beef initially, but have stopped it now because of issues of contaminated meat, which seems common nowadays” said the zookeeper, Murali.

“We named these baby leopards Sarang and Sarishma. We are looking forward to raising these little cubs into strong leopards,” he added.

The zoo has also witnessed recently the birth of nine other baby birds and animals and the population of black bucks and hog deer has also gone up. This is a reflection on the improved health status of the zoo animals, after a spate of diseases and deaths that claimed several animals.

According to the norms of the Central Zoo Authority, the Zoo cannot buy new animals. Instead, it could exchange animals with another Zoo. So an increase in the number of a particular species is an advantage since they can be exchanged for new animals.

source: http://www.yentha.com/news/view/news/say-hello-to-the-newcomers-at-the-zoo

By winning the prestigious award in the same category for a second consecutive time, Kerala Tourism has reaffirmed its pre-eminent position among its peers. As part of selecting the winner, thousands of respondents from 12 cities across the country voted for their choice of travel services in a Pan-India study conducted by the Nielsen Company.

The CNBC Awaaz Travel Awards seeks to honour the best in class travel destinations and other ancillary services of the tourism industry. The awards also aim to comprehend the consumer mindset vis-à-vis services and initiatives provided by the stakeholders.

The award comes in the wake of several recent recognitions achieved by Kerala Tourism, which was voted as the Best Domestic Tourism Board of the Year by another media conglomerate – Times Group at the inaugural Times Travel Honours 2011. Kerala Tourism also bagged the ‘Favourite Indian State’ award at the Outlook Traveller Tourism Awards 2010 in February.

Kerala Tourism hit the international circuit in September last year with a new three-minute promotional ad film ‘Your moment is waiting’ which won Golden City Award, dubbed the Oscar of Travel industry, top honours at the New York Festivals, and three Golds at the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA).

“This award is special as it reflects the sentiments of the travel industry in general and the consumers in particular. By winning the award again, Kerala has once again proved how it is dear to the domestic travelers,” remarked Rathan Kelkar. 

“It is yet another proud moment for the Kerala Tourism and is a recognition to the initiatives by the Tourism Department to promote Kerala farther and wider as an international destination with world class infrastructure facilities. The present Government is very much committed to the task of improving the overall growth of tourism sector in the State,” commented the Tourism Minister A P Anil Kumar, on winning the award.

“Such national recognitions spur us to chalk out bolder initiatives and measures to pitch God’s own Country as a world-class destination,” said Rani George, Director of Kerala Tourism.

source:  http://www.yentha.com/news/view/1/kerala%20tourism-cnbc%20award