Wiki Loves Onam 2024: A Journey of Collaboration and Cultural Celebration

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Two months have passed since the conclusion of the Wiki Loves Onam 2024 campaign, celebrating the vibrant festival of Onam and we are still in awe of the collective effort and enthusiasm that made the campaign such a success. Organizing this campaign was a journey of excitement and a shared love for the richness of Kerala‘s heritage. This campaign revolved around the excitement of people devoted to this cause coming together to celebrate and preserve Kerala’s vibrant heritage in Wikimedia platforms.

Capturing the Essence of Onam 🏵️

Wiki Loves Onam logo

Wiki Loves Onam 2024 was a two-month-long campaign held from September to October 2024, dedicated to preserving and celebrating the cultural richness of Kerala by documenting the unique customs, rituals, and festivities associated with the Onam festival. This initiative sought to bridge the gap between traditional cultural heritage and the world of open knowledge, using Wikimedia platforms as a medium for global sharing and preservation.

Our team, along with participants, documented the essence of Onam in the Wikimedia platforms during the campaign period. The campaign included:

  • Photography Campaign: Held from September 1–30, this initiative invited participants to upload photos of Onam festivities to Wikimedia Commons. Over 100 participants contributed 4,000+ media files, documenting everything from unique traditions, festivities, food, art forms, and more on Wikimedia Commons.
  • Writing Campaign: A parallel edit-a-thon on Malayalam Wikipedia resulted in the creation of 40 new articles and updates to 17 existing ones, enriching the digital knowledge about Onam and Kerala’s culture.
  • Workshops: A two-day workshop was organised for Wikimedia projects to students and Wikimedians. Attendees contributed to Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons, categorized media files, and improved structured data on Commons for media files uploaded during the campaign period

Check out the winners of the Photography Campaign on meta / on Instagram.

Capturing Kerala’s Traditions Through Videos

One of the highlights of this year’s campaign was recording live events and documenting it. It made our work more lively, letting viewers see Kerala’s culture in action. The team has recorded, processed, and uploaded 10 videos to Wikimedia Commons, which has been added to the articles associated with that enhancing the visual storytelling of Kerala’s cultural richness.

Pulikkali

A popular folk festival celebrated on the fourth day of Onam in Thrissur.  There will be nearly 7 to 10 teams from the premises of Thrissur city, Kerala, India. The stripes and spots of the tiger or leopard are painted on the human body and played with a face mask of the same. The Pulikkali has its own set of rhythmic music and movements.

This video documentation features a collection of videos that reflect some of the significant events and traditions associated with the festival. This includes Puli kali, the Nehru Trophy Boat Race, Neelamperoor Padayani, Kummattikali, and many other events related to the Onam celebration.

Check the meta page for more videos.

Collaborative Events and Community Engagement

As part of the campaign, various collaborative and local events were organized by the community and other interested groups. These events were integral to the campaign’s success, fostering community involvement and ensuring the comprehensive documentation of Onam-related cultural heritage.

Highlighted Events:

  • Pookkalam 2024: This initiative, held from September 5–30, was a collaboration with the Kerala Biodiversity Monitoring Network and Luca Science Portal. It aimed to document the native flowers of Kerala, often used in traditional floral arrangements during Onam.
  • Photowalk for Athachamaham: On September 6, 2024, a photowalk was conducted to capture the vibrant celebrations of Athachamaham, marking the grand procession of the Onam festival.
  • Photowalk during Pulikali: On September 18, 2024, participants joined a photowalk to document the energetic and colorful Pulikali performances, a unique folk art form integral to Onam festivities.

These collaborative events not only enriched the campaign but also encouraged diverse participation, fostering a deeper sense of community among contributors.

Why This Campaign Matters

The Wiki Loves Onam campaign was about more than capturing photos and videos—it’s about preserving Kerala’s culture and documenting it. By sharing the traditions and showcasing Kerala’s stunning tourist attractions on Wikimedia Commons, the campaign makes them accessible to people around the world, fostering a greater appreciation for the culture and state’s natural beauty.

Looking Ahead

As we celebrate the success of Wiki Loves Onam 2024, we are already looking ahead to what’s next. Some ideas for future campaigns include:

  • Expanding outreach to more communities and organizations to ensure broader participation.
  • Focusing on documenting lesser-known cultural aspects and festivals across Kerala.
  • Enhancing structured data on Wikimedia Commons for better accessibility and usage.

A Big Thank You

Thank you to everyone who supported, contributed and being part of this campaign. The success of the campaign was the success of each and everyone who made this possible. Let’s continue working together to celebrate and share Kerala’s incredible heritage and beauty. This campaign wouldn’t have been possible without the dedication of our volunteers and members of Wikimedia of Kerala UG. From organizing photo campaigns, photo walks and onsite events, their efforts were the backbone of Wiki Loves Onam 2024.

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