Pageant for tribal women gives Idukki's Sudhalakshmi the wings to dream again

The Muthuvan tribal community has for generations been dominated by males, with its women even discouraged from entering the public sphere.

- Nejma Sulaiman @Idukki

The Muthuvan tribal community has for generations been dominated by males, with its women even discouraged from entering the public sphere. In many settlements, women continue to stay in seclusion huts (valaymapura) during menstruation and dash off into the jungle on a chance meeting with strangers.

However, in the remote tribal settlement of Kulachivayal, in Idukki's Kanthalloor panchayat, there is a woman who flies in the face of deep-rooted traditions: Sudhalakshmi. The 29-year-old is the only candidate from the tribal community in Idukki to participate in the 'Miss Kerala Forest Goddess' fashion and fitness competition, being organised by the Kochi-based Aurora Film Company.