Lakes of India — 8
Vembanad — Where Water Becomes a Way of Life
In Kerala lies Vembanad Lake, the longest lake in India and the heart of Kerala's famous backwaters.
But Vembanad is more than a beautiful stretch of water.
Here, water shapes the way people live.
Houseboats glide through the backwaters. Fishing boats move between villages. Coconut palms line the waterways, and narrow canals connect homes and fields.
And then comes one of its most remarkable features.
Around Vembanad lies Kuttanad, a farming region famous for cultivating rice in land that in places lies below sea level.
Think about that:
A farmer growing rice below the level of the sea!
The lake is also the setting for Kerala's spectacular snake-boat races, where long traditional boats carrying dozens of rowers cut through the water in perfect rhythm.
So Vembanad is not merely a lake.
It is a road.
It is a workplace.
It is a source of food.
It is a sporting arena.
It is part of people's everyday lives.
Perhaps that is the magic of Kerala's backwaters:
Here, water is not something that separates people.
Water connects them.
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