From the deep reds and dark browns of the shola forests, from the fluorescent green of paddy fields and shimmering blue of summer skies to colourful costumes and bright faces, Kodagu is a splash of colours.
Forests, plantations and paddy fields give on the feeling that nothing can be richer than the soil of Kodagu. But that is not true! As is typical of all tropical rainforests, Kodagu's vegetation is precariously perched on the thin layer of rich humus and topsoil which wash away the movemt the trees and vegetation are removed from it. Torrential rains followed by landslides bare the land, leaving exposed rocks and stones on which no vegetation can be grown again, except perhaps eucalyptus, acacia or silver oak.
Kodagu is a land of many communities. Although Kodavas are the main ethnic group, Gowdas, Brahmins, Christians and Jains are other communities who live in Kodagu. Besides these communities, tribes such as Yeravas, Kurubas, Airies and Kudiyas, who are believed to be the original settlers of the area, also live in Kodagu. Muslims from the Malabar coast, the Mapilles, to have been here for several years as traders and businessmen.
The Kodavas are ancestor worshippers. Theirs is a martial race and it is not rare to find a Kodava in the highest echelons of our country's defence services even today. The local language- Kodavatak, has influences of Kannada, Malayalam and Tamil.