Theyyam/Thira is a ritual dance performance from  north Malabar, Kerala. When gods and temples were taken over by Brahmanical hegemony,  lower castes of north Malabar reinvented their own gods from myths and folklore. Theyyams represents one of such manifestations. Along with such gods, the ancestors becoming demigod figures is also a common practice.  Personally I have memories from my childhood related to the stories of  theyyams  in our ancestral temple which includes my great great grandparents. This picture is taken from the same temple and this  is a portrait of "Vasoorimala Bhagavathi", a feminine god figure who spreads small pox, if they are angry.
<a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:Asanjeevkeloth&amp;action=edit&amp;redlink=1" class="new" title="User:Asanjeevkeloth (page does not exist)">Akshay Sanjeev</a>
CC BY-SA 4.0
<span class="int-own-work" lang="en">Own work</span>