Thumpi Thullal is performed in connection with the
Onam festival. Only women partake in this dance. In Thumpi Thullal, the participants dressed in immaculate Onakkodi dress sit round in a circle. The main performer sits at the center of the circle. Then all the girls sing in chorus to the rhythmic clapping of hands and occasional vociferations called Kuravai. When the rhythm and the pitch of the clapping and the songs rise to feverish, the girl in the center enters into a trance and begins to dance.
