The monsoon in Kerala is not just weather, it is a mood. It brings with it an atmosphere of renewal. In this video, our photographer Thulasi Kakkat captures this change in mood as the first rains enter the land.
The Indian Meteorological Department has clearly defined criteria for declaring the onset: eight of 14 designated meteorological stations in Kerala and Karnataka must register 2.5mm rain for two consecutive days, there must be 30-40 kmph westerlies (winds from the equator reaching India) at a certain height and a certain value of radiation.
Read: The Hindu's editorial on predicting the monsoons
