Theyyam. This performance - one we unabashedly crashed in on - was part of a family ritual to safeguard the ancestral home and included animal sacrifice. This dancer picked up a rooster and beheaded it and whirled about with it, chanting all the while, drops of blood flying fast. You can see it in his hand here. The drumbeats were insane and everyone was drunk on toddy. If only I'd witnessed a few more of these during our stay.

Kannur, Kerala.
2008