India Guide
Kerala
Kochi (Cochin)
The venerable city of KOCHI (long known as Cochin), Kerala's prime tourist destination, spreads across islands and promontories between the Arabian Sea and the backwaters. Its main sections – modern Ernakulam and the old peninsular districts of Mattancherry and Fort Cochin to the west – are linked by ferries, and less romantic bridges. Although some visitors stay in the more convenient Ernakulam, the overwhelming majority base themselves in Fort Cochin itself, where spice markets, Chinese fishing nets, a synagogue, a Portuguese palace, India's first European church and seventeenth-century Dutch homes can all be found within an easy walk. Kochi also offers kathakali dance performances, both in authentic and abridged tourist versions.
Kochi sprang into being in 1341, when a flood created a safe natural port that swiftly replaced Muziris (now Kodungallur, 50km north) as the chief harbour on the Malabar Coast. The royal family moved here from Muziris in 1405, after which the city grew rapidly, attracting Christian, Arab and Jewish settlers from the Middle East. From the early 1500s onwards the Portuguese, Dutch and British successively, and aggressively, competed to control the port and its lucrative spice trade. From 1812 until Independence in 1947 it was administered by a succession of diwans, or finance ministers.
Old Kochi, the thumb-shaped peninsula whose northern tip presides over the entrance to the harbour, formed the focus of European trading activities. With high-rise development restricted to Ernakulam across the water, its twin districts of Fort Cochin, in the west, and Mattancherry, on the headland's eastern side, have preserved an extraordinary wealth of early colonial architecture, spanning the Portuguese, Dutch and British eras – a crop unparalleled in India. Approaching by ferry, the waterfront, with its sloping red-tiled roofs and ranks of peeling, pastel-coloured godoowns (warehouses), offers a view that can have changed little in centuries.
Kathakali
1 Dr Devan's Kathakali See India Foundation, Kalathiparambil Cross Road, near Ernakulam railway station
0484/236 6471 Opening time: Daily 6.45–8pm (make-up at 6pm)The oldest-established tourist Kathakali show in the city, introduced by the inimitable Dr Devan, who starts the show with a lengthy discourse on Indian philosophy and mythology.
Price: Rs100–150
2 Cochin Cultural Centre Soudartham, Manikath Road, Ernakulam, and KB Jacob Road, Fort Cochin
0484/235 7153 
www.cochinculturalcentre.com Opening time: Daily Kathakali shows 6.30pm (make-up at 4.30pm)Award-winning company with theatres in both Fort Cochin and Ernakulam. Daily Kathakali shows start 6.30pm (make-up at 4.30pm). They also host introductory courses. Full details and booking online. Price: Rs100–150
3 Kerala Kathakali Centre opposite Brunton Boatyard, Fort Cochin
0484/221 5827 www.kathakalicentre.com Opening time: Daily Kathakali performances 6.30–8pm (make-up at 5pm); Indian classical recitals from 8.45pmPopular performances by a company of graduates of the renowned Kalamandalam Academy. You usually get to see three characters, and the music is live. One- to three-week courses are also on offer. See their website for more details.
Price: Rs100–150
4 Rhythms Theatre (Greenix) opposite Fort House, Fort Cochin
0484/654 9444 www.greenix.in Opening time: Daily Kathakali performances from 6.30pmThis is the priciest show, but combines excerpts from kathakali plays with displays of mohiniyattam dance, kalarippayattu martial art and, on Sundays, theyyattam, set against a combination of live and pre-recorded music. Performances aren't of the highest standard, but the evening is more likely to appeal to kids as costumes and acts change in quick succession.
Price: Rs450
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