North Kerala. Next Keralam.

The Malabar coast runs north from Kozhikode through Kannur and Thalassery to Kasaragod — the stretch of Kerala where the Western Ghats fall toward the Arabian Sea. The backwaters here are quieter, from Kavvayi to Valiyaparamba; the beaches are working shores as much as destinations; and the forests of Aralam and the Wayanad hills begin a short drive inland.

It is also where Theyyam is performed at village kavus through the ritual season, where Kannur’s handlooms are still woven on wooden looms, and where the Malabar table — Thalassery biryani, bakery traditions, coastal fish — is part of daily life.

Travelling north from Kerala’s better-known routes, the landscape keeps changing — coast, backwater, laterite, forest — within a few hours’ drive. Because we live here, we can time a journey to a ritual night, know which backwater stretch is quiet at dusk, and introduce the weavers, cooks and performers we work with.