Onavillu

Its name may come from Onam, a festival in Kerala where the instrument is used in dances, and villu, which means 'bow' in Malayalam (and several other South Indian languages).

[1] Onavillu also refers to flat, tapered wooden artifacts decorated with tassels and used in ceremonies of devotion to Lord Vishnu.

The onavillu that accompanies the Kummattikali and other folk dances is a Keralite string instrument made from the pith of the palmyra stem, or from bamboo, shaped as a bow.

The ceremonial onavillu, which is not a musical instrument, is made from a flat piece of wood 1/2 inch thick, tapering on both sides.

[5] On Thiruvonam day, the birthday of Lord Maha Vishnu, large number of devotees visit the Sri Padmanabha Swamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India to take part in the onavillu charthal, the dedication ceremony of the colourful bows.