Kozhikode: The rich and eventful history of Kozhikode beach still remains oblivious for the younger generations. The history of the foreigners, invasion of land, Zamorin rule, sea trade links with foreigners and exchange of the cultures still remain hidden.
But now, with Freedom Beach, these historic events have been engraved on the walls reviving the memories of the beach. The new project Freedom Beach narrates the story of the fiery freedom fighters and shores coming in after every ebb depicts the rich cultural history of Kerala.
The Freedom Square at the shores of Kozhikode is filled with the stories of the 'Salt Satyagraha' and the cruelties of the British army towards those resisting them during the British colonial rule. The Square has been built in such a way that the glowing moments of sacrifices by our Freedom fighters communicates with the present times. The walls erected here are engraved with the cultural and trade exchanges with the Arabs, Chinese and Portuguese, the golden times of the Zamorin’s rule and the struggles against the British colonial invasion.
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MLA Pradeep Kumar took the initiative to develop the space. The Square’s works have been completed at a total outlay of Rs 2.5 Crore. Renowned architects Vinod Cyriac and P P Vivek designed the spaces at Freedom Square and the Cultural Beach.
With the rise of the Freedom Square at Kozhikode, a stretch on the beach of Kozhikode has also got the title - ‘Cultural beach’. Kozhikode Beach has always been a venue for cultural, art and literature events with mass participation.
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Considering it as a space for cultural interactions, a spacious stage has been set up to the south of Freedom Square to conduct public meetings and conventions. On the other side, a permanent venue has also been readied for Kerala Literature Festival.
This includes facilities for conducting cultural celebrations, discussions and debates, a permanent venue for the book festival in which leading foreign writers also participates, besides the basic amenities. Built at a cost of Rs four crore, allocated by the Tourism Department, the Freedom Square has been utilised for the makeover of the ‘Cultural Beach’ stretch at Kozhikode.
