Kerala celebrates Christmas with food and wine

People from all walks of life in Kerala celebrated the Christmas Thursday, starting their day with the mass and savouring scrumptious meals such as appam with fish molly, beef roast and homemade cakes.

In most Christian homes, people got up early and attended mass. After the customary wine and a piece of cake given by the parish priest, they rushed back home for the Christmas meal.

Christians make up 22 percent of the state's 32 million population but celebrations were evident even in non-Christian homes sporting the traditional star and a Christmas tree.

"The Christmas meal is certainly the main meal of the day and we had appam with fish molly, beef roast, steamed bananas, egg roast and homemade cakes," said Lissy John, a retired banker in Kanjirapally.

The only blip in this year's Christmas festivities is that there has been no supply of duck and duck meat after avian flu broke out in the duck rearing districts of Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta and Kottayam in the last week of November.

"If beef was a rarity last year because of foot and mouth disease, this year, people are not very keen to have duck meat," said Hameed Kutty, a trader in meat and poultry products in the Changnacherry market.

Christmas celebrations were witnessed at the film set of "Bhaskar the Rascal" starring Mammootty at Kochi.

Director Siddique, Mammootty ansd Nayan Tara led the celebrations and a huge cake was cut.

Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Leader of Opposition V.S. Achuthanandan wished the people of the state a happy Christmas.

All educational institutions are closed and normal life is expected to resume Monday.