Parents and other onlookers on Thursday thronged to Kannur central jail parade ground, which was the venue for the band set competition as part of the 57th Kerala School Kalolsavam.
The audience which sat in the gallery witnessing the performances of 19 teams from state schools across the state, found themselves in an unusual dilemma; whether to rise or not during the national anthem.
The performance of every team invariably concluded with the team playing national anthem. While the students tried to display their best, the audience were left confused, as they were unsure whether to stand up or not.
While some instantly stood up in attention, some others realised the importance of "respecting" the nation, a tad too late. But they wasted no time in quickly following suit. There were also some others, who did not feel the necessity to do so, but then bowed to "peer pressure" and gave in.
When MediaOne, a regional Malayalam channel which first reported this, spoke to some people in the audience, they gave the most interesting answers!
"Modiji has asked us to respect the nation and rise during the national anthem," said a middle-aged woman, before bursting into peals of laughter.
Another man explained: "Recently the SC made it mandatory for everyone to rise when national anthem is being played. That's why everybody instantly rose."
Watch the video here: