Malappuram, Keralam: What usually ends up in a bin will take centre stage in Malappuram this Onam; thousands of discarded plastic bottles, CDs, food containers and other waste have been transformed into a 1,560-square-foot pookalam, billed as Asia's largest waste-to-art floral carpet.

The installation at Kottakkunnu will be inaugurated by Industries and IT Minister PK Kunhalikutty on Friday evening.

It has been created jointly by the Malappuram District Suchitwa Mission and Eco World Waste Management LLP as part of an effort to turn the message of responsible waste management into a striking public artwork.

The pookalam has been assembled using recycled plastic waste collected from households across the district by members of the Haritha Karma Sena.

The material was sorted before being handed over for the artwork. The scale of the installation is reflected in the material that has gone into it.

It features 20,736 plastic bottles, 13 kg of sacks, 485 CDs, 12 kg of aluminium foil, 138 food containers and 18 kg of plastic covers, officials said.

Nine artists worked for five days to complete the installation, which has been designed around the theme of a 'green Onam'.

Beyond its sheer size, the pookalam seeks to marry Kerala's traditional cultural imagery with a modern environmental message. Motifs of Kathakali and a chundan vallam, or snake boat, feature prominently in the artwork, showing how discarded material can be given a second life through creativity and proper waste management.

The project carries a simple message: 'Our waste, our responsibility.' It urges people to avoid littering, segregate waste at source and dispose of it only in designated bins, while keeping public spaces clean.

The waste-to-art pookalam will remain open to the public at Kottakkunnu until August 31, allowing visitors to see how what was once considered waste has been turned into an Onam spectacle.