The State police’s ‘handwashing dance’ had gone viral globally when cops at the Kakkanad district jail set out to make a somewhat similar video to create awareness about COVID-19 in March.

Though Onam was still five months away then, the police officers chose the format of Thiruvathirakali or Kaikottikali, a dance form largely associated with the festival. That the dance was usually the domain of women did not stop the male cops from performing it.

While the 12-minute video was uploaded on YouTube and police officers at the jail shared it through their social media accounts, it was far from being a hit like the ‘handwashing dance’.

However, six months down the line, the video has received a second lease of life as it is getting widely shared on social media. “It is probably because Onam is around the corner and people now relate more with it as Thiruvathirakali is mostly performed during these times,” said Prabhan T., who then served as gatekeeper at the district jail and penned the lyrics.

“It was completely impromptu and the writing of lyrics and the choreography was all wrapped up in less than 30 minutes. It was done with the cops who were on duty at that point of time,” said Mr. Prabhan, who is now assistant superintendent at a special sub-jail in Thiruvananthapuram.

He claimed that the video has received over 50,000 views and numerous shares through multiple social media accounts, including WhatsApp groups.