Tamil Nadu

Peppery rice and moong dal tempered in ghee. Its sweet twin is cooked in a new pot on Thai Pongal.

Rice and moong dal cooked with jaggery, ghee, cardamom and cashews, the sweet pongal offered to the Sun on Thai Pongal.

Toor dal and vegetables simmered in tamarind with a freshly roasted and ground spice and coconut paste, the everyday heart of a Tamil meal.

A thin, peppery tamarind broth with cumin and garlic, drunk as a soup or poured over rice, and the home remedy for colds.

A thick, tangy tamarind gravy made with sun-dried vegetable or berry vathal, cooked in gingelly oil and eaten with hot rice.

Sour buttermilk simmered with a ground coconut, chilli and cumin paste and vegetables such as ash gourd or okra.

Greens such as amaranth cooked soft, mashed and tempered simply, a daily dish of Tamil homes.

A thick, crisp pancake of soaked and ground rice and mixed lentils, often served with avial or jaggery.

Round, crisp-shelled dumplings made from idli batter in a dimpled cast-iron pan, a Chettinad favourite.

Crisp, doughnut-shaped fritters of whipped urad dal, served with sambar and chutney or offered at festivals.

A spiced temple idli flavoured with pepper, cumin, ginger and ghee, traditionally made as an offering in Kanchipuram's Vishnu temple.

A mild, creamy side dish of moong dal, potato and a ground coconut, fennel and poppy seed paste, served with idli and dosai.

Tamil Nadu's classical dance of crisp footwork, sculpted poses and expressive storytelling, recognised by the Sangeet Natak Akademi.

A folk dance in which performers balance a decorated pot (karagam) on the head while dancing, in honour of the rain goddess Mariamman.

Street theatre of northern Tamil Nadu that tells stories from the Mahabharata through song, dance and dialogue through the night.

A devotional dance in which pilgrims carry a decorated arch (kavadi) on their shoulders as an offering to Lord Murugan.

An ancient Tamil martial art of staff fighting, performed as display and taught as a sport.

A simple women's folk dance of rhythmic clapping in a circle, with songs and no instruments.

The Tamil New Year, on the first day of the month of Chithirai. Homes are decorated with kolam, the new almanac is read, and a mango pachadi of sweet, sour and bitter tastes is served.

Tamil Nadu's four-day harvest festival in the month of Thai: Bhogi, Thai Pongal, Mattu Pongal for cattle, and Kaanum Pongal for family visits. Rice is boiled with milk and jaggery until it overflows.

The Tamil festival of lamps on the Karthigai asterism of the month of Karthigai. At Tiruvannamalai a great lamp, the Maha Deepam, is lit on top of the Arunachala hill.

Both a Jyotirlinga and one of the Char Dham. Tradition says Rama worshipped Shiva here before crossing to Lanka. Its corridors are among the longest of any Hindu temple.

The city of a thousand temples, the only one of the Sapta Puri in the south, sacred to both Shiva and Vishnu.

A Shakti Peetha at Kanchipuram, where Sati's abdomen is said to have fallen. The Goddess is worshipped here as Kamakshi.

A Shakti Peetha at Kanyakumari, where Sati's back is said to have fallen. The Goddess is worshipped here as Kanyakumari.

A Shakti Peetha at Suchindram, Kanyakumari district, where Sati's upper teeth is said to have fallen. The Goddess is worshipped here as Narayani.

A Shakti Peetha at Kanchipuram, where Sati's navel is said to have fallen. The Goddess is worshipped here as Kamakshi.

The Pancha Bhoota temple of earth, where Shiva is worshipped as a linga of sand (Prithvi linga).

The Pancha Bhoota temple of water; a spring keeps the sanctum wet.

The Pancha Bhoota temple of fire, at the foot of the Arunachala hill where the Karthigai Deepam is lit.

The Pancha Bhoota temple of space (akasha), where Shiva is worshipped as Nataraja, lord of the cosmic dance.

The first of Murugan's six abodes, where he married Deivanai; a rock-cut temple.

The second abode, on the seashore, where Murugan defeated the demon Surapadman; famous for Skanda Shashti.

The great Shiva temple built by the Chola king Rajaraja I, part of the UNESCO-listed Great Living Chola Temples.

Seaside Pallava rock-cut temples, monolithic rathas and giant reliefs, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The great temple of the goddess Meenakshi and Lord Sundareswarar at the heart of Madurai, one of India's oldest living cities.

An island temple of Lord Shiva, one of the twelve Jyotirlingas and one of the four Char Dham pilgrimages.

The southern tip of mainland India, where the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal meet.

The best-known hill station of the Nilgiris, with tea gardens, lakes and a historic mountain railway.

A vast temple town of Lord Vishnu as Ranganatha, on an island in the Kaveri at Tiruchirappalli.

Forests on the Nilgiri slopes rich in elephants, tigers and gaur, with a long-running elephant camp at Theppakadu.

Tamil Nadu's capital on the Bay of Bengal: a port, industrial and IT city with old temples, colonial buildings and a long beach.

An ancient temple city and Pallava capital, famous for its many temples and its silk sarees.

The Tamil epic of the anklet: Kannagi's fight for justice. One of the Five Great Epics of Tamil literature.

Pallava rock-cut temples, rathas and the great relief of the descent of the Ganga.

Brihadisvara temples at Thanjavur and Gangaikondacholapuram and the Airavatesvara temple at Darasuram, still in worship.