Masi Magam: The Irular Community Festival in Mahabalipuram

Every year during the full moon of the Tamil month of Masi, thousands of people from the Irular community travel across Tamil Nadu to gather on the shores of Mahabalipuram for the Masi Magam festival. For several days, the beach transforms into a temporary settlement where families live, cook, worship, and reconnect with their ancestral traditions.

At the center of the gathering is the worship of Kanniamman, the clan deity believed to protect the community. Rituals unfold through fire-lit ceremonies, offerings, trance, drumming, and acts of devotion performed under the open sky and by the sea.

This long-term documentary project follows the festival beyond its rituals, observing both the ceremonies and the quieter moments of everyday life that surround them. Together, the photographs explore the enduring relationship between faith, community, and cultural identity within one of Tamil Nadu's indigenous traditions.