Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Kerala tourism pins hopes on Kochi biennale

The three-month-long Kochi-Muziris Biennale that opens Dec 12 with an art and music gala will be playing to packed houses in this ancient Kerala city’s tourism industry that is currently stagnating.
Kochi (formerly Cochin), dating back to Biblical times, is booked for 12/12/12 — a day that many god-fearing residents await with bated breath. The biennale will exhibit artwork and create site-specific installations in Fort Kochi, Mattancherry, Kochi city and Muziris town, the site of an early secular port that was washed away by a deluge around 13 AD.

The non-profit event will use heritage buildings and disused structures in the old quarters of Kochi and Muziris as exhibition venues to regenerate the region’s history and open its culture to the world.
The tourism industry is thus pinning its hopes on the biennale to breathe new blood in the city’s stagnating tourism economy. The inflow of domestic and foreign visitors here has not seen any increase despite investment and growth in the shipping trade. The bulk of tourists here are business travellers who come for short stays.

No comments:

Post a Comment