Kondotty Nercha: A festival of harmony amid attempts to divide

"It's our festival and we celebrate it together." The words by Ramesan, a resident of Kondotty, aptly sum up the feelings that people of the town in Malappuram attach to Kondotty Nercha.

- SANOOP SASIDHARAN @Malappuram

Celebrated in the memory of the late Sufi saint Muhammad Shah, the first Kondotty Thangal, Kondotty Nercha is a festival in which people of all faiths take part.

The celebrations, centred around Shah's Mughal-style tomb (Qubba), are returning after a 14-year gap caused by a family dispute over the sthananeeyan (spiritual head). For the residents, its timing could not have been better what with efforts being made from various quarters to create division in society.