Traditional Performing Art Forms - Aymanam Krishna Kaimal

Kathakali / Ramanattom / Ottan Thullal / Mohiniyattom / Chavittunatakam / Kathaprasangam / Explanatory Notes

Koothu and Koodiyattom

Koothu was apparaently the general term given for the dance-dramas in ancient Tamilakam. Various types of koothu were mentioned in the ancient Tamil poems including kuravai koothu, tunangai koothu and olvalamala. Koothu were normally performed on festive occasions like victory in a war or a good harvest, and both men and women participated.

The growth of agrarian society with the formation of caste and class structure and the emergence of the ruling power transformed the ways of social interactions, war came to be directed by the chief or the ruler, and victory over warfare was accredited to the ruler. The surplus agricultural production came to be appropriated by the emerging rulers and land-owners. These changes affected the dance-dramas also as koothu began to be staged in the premises of the rulers and land-owners. Specialized koothans and koothachies emerged, whose major functions were as performers in the "Durbar" of the land-owners and kings.

The growth of bhakti movement in Tamilakam during seventh and eighth centuries, resulted in the absorption of a number of popular cult forms by the growing temple complexes. Among them probably were the forms of ritual dancing to propitiate deities, and women whose function was to do ritual services to the temple through dancing emerged. This was the beginning of tevaradiyal system. The popular dance forms were formalized and refined to convey specific meanings to each enactment. Similarly, the dance-dramas were also absorbed into the temple premises with the koothans narrating stories related to puranic or itihasic legends, or singing songs composed by the saivite or vaishnavite saints, spreading the concept of bhakti.

In Kerala, koothu took a somewhat different form. By seventh and eighth centuries, agrarian settlements had developed on the banks of major rivers in Kerala. Temples were developing as the new ideological centres of the agrarian settlements under the control of the Brahmanas. Political power providing legitimacy to Brahmanical control emerged in Mahodayapuram. The new ruling elite consisting of Brahmanas and the political power also began to develop new cultural forms. However, impact of the bhakti movement of Tamilakam was marginal, and hence the dance-dramas took a different form. Although located in the temple premises, they became forms of entertainment for the ruling elite, with little or no element of bhakti. Instead of the devotional aspect, the formal stylization of performance and technical skill of the performer took the upper hand.

This was the background of the emergence of koothu and koodiyattom. Information on koothu and koodiyattom shows that they were in vogue in all major temples from ninth century, with the formal aspects fully developed before fifteenth century. Attaprakarams and kramadipikas were composed which were to provide technical basis of the performance. In selecting the theme for koothu, puranas and itihasas were not depended upon, all the plays of Bhasa, plays like Tapati samvaranam, Subhadradhananjayam, and Ascharya choodamani purported to have been composed in Kerala itself, were commonly used in koothu. Among them Pratijna- Yaugandharayanam and Swapnavasavadattam by Bhasa and Ascharya choodamani by Shaktibhadra were regularly performed. The whole play was never selected for koothu. Only one act or a part of the act in the play was chosen. Mantrankam in pratijna, anguliyankam and ashokavanikankam in Ascharya choodamani were popularly selected for koothu. Mattavilasam of Mahendra Varman was selected for koodiyattom.

Koothu performed in temples were of three types, prabandhakoothu, nangiar koothu and koodiyattom. Koothu was conducted by chakkiyar, where the story is enacted by vachika abhinaya i.e., verbal acting. Nangiar koothu, which used to be in vogue in earlier centuries, were performed by women, who sang the songs and acted, with considerable emphasis on acting. Koodiyattom used to be combined dance drama conducted by chakkiyar and nangiar in which more participants were possible, Separate nangiar koothu apparently disappeared in later centuries with nangiar becoming an accessory to chakkiyar, singing crucial songs or hymns and using the instrument, kuzhithalam.

The appeal of koothu among the ruling elite was not only its method of expanding a story through verbal acting and miming. There were a number of opportunities for the performer to digress from the main story and embark upon a social satire, and make fun of the life style of Namboodiri Brahmans and rulers. An essential ingredient of all koothu performance was purushartha koothu, purportedly done by the vidooshaka (jester) in the story, in which contemporaneous events are described and satirised, which is done by elaborate exposition of the four noble ideals asanam (eating), rajaseva (propitiating the royal patron), vinodam (sex) and vanchanam (cheating others). Although this part was done for pure entertainment, it gave opportunities for the chakkiyar to present his critical remarks on the society in a form acceptable to the ruling elite.

The performance of koothu was in koothambalam specially constructed for the purpose in temple premises. Koothambalam was a stage usually 15.60 meters long, 11.60 meters broad with a 4.26 meters square platform supported by pillars in the centre. The koothambalams in the Vadakkunnatha temple at Trissoor and Irinjalakkuda temple are famous where koothu is being conducted to this day.

The performance of koothu in the classical form was a prolonged affair taking upto forty days, with the chakkiyar not proceeding beyond one sloka or a sequence in a day, and where the chakkiyar held the attention of the audience with pure skill in verbal expression, acting and miming. Koodiyattom follows at the end of the koothu. In koodiyattom miming, facial and bodily expressions and dancing takes the precedence.

Koothu and koodiyattom, like other pre-modern art forms was slowly disappearing by the beginning of the twentieth century. During the first half of twentieth century, the late Painkulam Rama Chakkiyar took initiative in taking koodiyattom outside the temple precincts, in order to rescue it from degeneration. However, compared to other traditional art forms, koothu, and koodiyattom have not been a resurgent trend.

In 1965, koodiyattom was included by Kerala Kalamandalam in its curriculum. Traditionally, only chakkiyar, nangiars, and Nambiars (who played the mizhavu, the accompanying instrument for the koothu) were allowed to learn and perform these arts. However, Kalamandalam is admitting students of all groups desirous of learning this art.

Make-up and Costume

Unlike kathakali, the make-up and costume of koodiyattom are not so elaborate. Heroic characters are made-up with green and a small curved paper frame on the face. Costumes have a blend of brilliant colours, predominantly red, black and white. The make-up and costume of Surpanakha and Hanuman have quite a realistic appeal. The facial make-up of Ravana has some resemblance to that of the kathi characters in kathakali. Vidooshaka has special make-up and costume that vividly display his clownish features. Rice paste and colour powders are used for facial make-up. They wear small head-gears somewhat similar to that of Krishna muti in kathakali.

The Stage

Besides a lighted brass lamp, the stage conventions include pillars covered by red-silk and bunches of coconuts and bananas tied to two plantains on the front pillars. From the ceiling are hung tender coconut leaves and red hibiscus flowers.

Modern stage has lighting and loud speakers as additions to the traditional stage settings.

Acting

Stylized form of vocal recitation coupled with a complete hand-gesture language and facial expressions of a precise nature mainly characterise the acting in koodiyattom. Unlike that of kathakali, vachikabhinaya (verbal acting) is rendered by the actors themselves in koodiyattom. Vidooshaka, the royal clown being a major character, sometimes explains in simple Malayalam the background of the story and gives a live image of characters in the minds of the spectators. Often humorous, vidooshaka criticises the contemporary society. There is irony and satire in his words, movements and bhavas. All the main characters in koodiyattom customarily enact nirvahana, a recollection of past events in the story to prepare the background for stepping into the present. The female character speaks in the crude form of sanskrit called prakrit. Characters like Ravana, Hanuman and Surpanakha are allowed to make appropriate grunts on stage.

Music - Instrumental

Mizhavu is the major musical instrument used in koodiyattom. It is made of either clay or copper. Mizhavu is a big jar with a narrow mouth which is covered by leather. It is played by both hands. There have been recent experiments to synchronize the movements and expressions of the actors with the mizhavu music. As a tradition, mizhavu is played only by the Nambiars.

Edakka lends bhava and laya for a vivid portrayal of the soft sentiments of both male and female characters in koodiyattom. Kuzhal (a mini trumpet) and conch-shell are also used sometimes.

Koodiyattom begins with a prayer known as akkithe. The nangiars usually sing akkithe using cymbals to mark the rhythm. The stage then is ready for the entry of the character. A curtain is held when he comes on stage.

Nangiar koothu, strictly a solo performance by nangiar is nirvahanas of the female character in koodiyattom. The repertoire is sreekrishnacharitam (the story of Lord Krishna) which gives scope for enacting quite a good deal of episodes relating to the childhood life of Krishna. The actress renders the vachikabhinaya in prakrit. Nangiarkoothu provides nangiar plenty of opportunities for the powerful presentation of characters and detailed improvisations. Nangiarkoothu used to be performed only in the temples of Kerala till recently.

Kerala Kalamandalam has now taken up the task of popularising nangiar koothu by taking it outside the temples and allowing training to aspirants of all communities.

The art is hence given a secular dimension. The services of Kalamandalam and the great exponents, both Mani Madhava Chakyar and Ammannoor Madhava Chakyar in the field have proved instrumental in saving this rich art form from total extinction.

Kathakali

Kathakali which symbolises the visual art of Kerala has now developed to be qualified as a universal art. This distinguished art which has not even a distant connection with any foreign art has attracted the whole world and received unequivocal praise from them all. Despite the hurdles created in the way of understanding this art clearly, its themes are pertaining to legends and holy scriptures or puranas of ancient past. Despite the complex technics of dramatization, intricate artificiality in the dressing system and miming action, kathakali is still being appreciated by every one.

What is the reason for this? The main reason for its appeal is its attractiveness gained by the perfect blending of numerous varieties of fine arts. Kathakali is an art form to which the term 'total theatre' may be applied. Various art forms like dance, dance-drama, music, instrumental-music, perfect mechanical art (shilpam) etc., have been incorporated into kathakali. The ancient preceptors of kathakali have combined various facets of many important arts in it, so that various levels of appreciation emanate from it. Kathakali has the ability to entertain an audience of varying tastes. The organizational beauty of the art increases the impact of its outward appearance.

Certain alluring forms of art have gained national importance in every state of India. Bharata natya, kuchippudi, kathak, yakshagana etc., are some of them. Kathakali has already developed to such an extent that it is able to overtake these art forms. Its progress towards perfection by the integration of traditional arts that have lasted for centuries, was the main reason for the development of this art to the present level. Conscious effort is required to fully enjoy this art, which is entirely classical in character. A complete knowledge about the background of its origin, development and evolution, four-fold acting system and puranic atmosphere is absolutely necessary in order to relish this art in its fullness.

The Origin and Evolution

Kathakali is related to the religious and social art forms that existed in ancient Kerala. Various art forms which can be classified as dance, drama and thullal influenced the cultural life of our people. The village arts which were related to modes of worship and ritual like thottam, theeyattu, mudiyettu and padayani were the originating points of dance, instrumental - music and other fine arts. In later years efforts were made to enjoin the positive aspects of all village arts in order to create new art forms. The origin of ramanattom which is the predecessor of kathakali itself is an example of this fact. The first ramanattom was a visual art directed and experimentally presented by Kottarakkara Tampuran, taking suitable parts from the local arts like kalamezhuthu, theeyattu, mudiyettu and padayani which existed in various parts of Kerala, and from more established arts like koodiyattom, ashtapadi-attom, krishnanattom etc. In later years new reforms like the vettathunadan, kalladikodan and kalingodan systems were introduced and it was these development that brought the present form of kathakali into being.

Ramanattom

The origin of ramanattom indicates a turning point in the artistic and literary culture of Kerala. Upto that time the supporting literature used for koothu and attom, was written in pure Sanskrit. Ramayanam attakkatha, written in manipravala style, was a new step in those days. Koodiyattom and koothu were then considered as the monopoly of chakyars. With the advent of ramanattom different castes from Brahmans to Nairs began to demonstrate their acting ability, through this new form. The visual arts were able to move outside the temple precincts from then onwards. Koothu, koodiyattom and krishnanattom were presented only inside the temple and hence the lower castes could not see and enjoy them. But with the advent of ramanattom, visual arts acquired entry into a more popular stage.

Ramanattom was born out of certain particular circumstances that existed in southern Kerala. Some are of opinion that ramanattom is only a simple imitation of krishnattom that existed in northern Kerala. But that is not correct. Ramanattom which has an individuality and style of its own was not the imitation of another art form. If it was so kathakali which is a more developed and cultured form of ramanattom could never have achieved its present level of universal fame. At the same time, krishnanattom still survives only in its original form within the four walls of the Guruvayoor temple.

Veera Kerala Varma (A.D. 1653-1694) who was a young poet and a member of the Kottarakkara royal family was the inventor of ramanattom. A legend is still in existence regarding the origin of ramanattom. "Once Kottarakkara Tampuran invited the krishnanattom group of Manaveda Raja, the samutiri of Calicut to his place. But the samutiri rejected this invitation saying that there is none in southern Kerala who can really relish krishnanattom. This incident really enraged Tampuran and as a challenge he created ramanattom instead of krishnanattom and performed it on the same day as was decided earlier." Such legends regarding many art forms are prevalent in Kerala. However it is difficult to believe that ramanattom was written by Kottarakkara Tampuran to take revenge on the samutiri of Calicut. For it is impossible to believe that such a fine visual art which is technically complex and a combination of the good parts of many earlier forms of visual arts could emerge from the imagination of a particular person in one fine morning. Ramanattom can really be considered only as a particular development in the prolonged process of evolution of different art forms in Kerala.

The Theme of Ramanattom

Ramanattom is based on the story of Ramayana from the incarnation of Rama to the Rama-Ravana War, Ravana's defeat and Rama's crowning at Ayodhya. The story is written by Kottarakkara Tampuran and is divided into eight poetic sections so that each section can be enacted in one day. These eight sections are puthrakameshti, seetha swayamvaram, vicchinnabhishekam, kharavadham, balivadham, thoranayudham, sethubandhanam and yudham (war). The Tampuran wrote Ramayanam attakkatha on the basis of Valmiki Ramayana. As a poetic formation the poet starts with salutation of Vigneswara that is Ganapathy, the Goddess of words Saraswathy, Valmiki, the hero Rama and the heroine Seetha in the prime poem of Puthrakameshti. Tampuran did only the prime duty of any kathakali poet, that is to compose some poems and padams that are essential for presenting the story of Rama in the stage. As a poem intended for visual performance, Tampuran did not give emphasis on the literary beauty of the attakkatha. His genuine interest in art like instrumental-music, dance and above all his pious devotion to Lord Rama prompted him to compose this attakkatha. Also it is doubtful whether he had a clear view of the concepts regarding the form and expression of visual poetics. "However, Kottarakkara Tampuran wrote ramanattom using many tunes and rhythms and which he divided into eight sections, enmeshed in literature, music and dance he was actually presenting in the feet of Malayalam language a new art form and without his own knowledge was building a pearly palace for installing Malayalam music."* Moreover he introduced a new art form for the attakkatha literature. Gita Govindam and Krishna Geethi were the artistic models followed by him.

Tampuran introduced ramanattom more or less imitating the performance of koodiyattom and different folk arts. The first imperfect forms were later embellished by Vettathu Tampuran in his own way. The verbal acting by the performers were relinquished and acting by using symbols and signs was introduced. This increased the importance of the musician in the stage. Rama and Lakshmana were decorated with green manayola, crown with peacock feathers, dress and ornaments. Leading characters had their eyelids blackened with an elongated tail, and reddened with chunda flower, and the demons or asuras had masks and a black moustache was painted over their face paint. All characters except the part of maharsi (sage) were well clothed. All these are more or less an imitation of koodiyattom. It was the Vettathu Raja who decided the arrangement of dance called purappadu after thodayam, the practice of thiranottam before the appearance of Asuras and the use of chenda together with maddalam at the time of their action. He also improved the dancing part through acting with signs and did away with verbal acting. The most important improvement that kathakali gained from the Vettathunad system is ramanattom that was made on acting oriented fine art with appropriate incorporation of different dance forms.

Kottayathu Tampuran

Kottayathu Tampuran who belonged to the first part of eighteenth century was a poet and a preceptor of dramatics who gave a scientific basis for kathakali and attakkatha literature. Bakavadham, Kirmeeravadham, Kalyana saugandhikam and Nivathakayacha kalakeyavadham are the four perfect Kottayam works. And these works are foremost in literary beauty and musical quality and have substantial acting possibilities. Simple arrangement of padams, sweetness of expressions, and depth in conception appear in the works of Tampuran from start to finish. The contributions of Kottayathu Tampuran are invaluable as far as literature, music and technical aspects are concerned. Acceptance of the theory that the literature must be beautiful and sublime if its enactment is to be fully relished was another important development. The most important contribution of Tampuran to kathakali was that he steadied the scientific basis of its literature, music and acting.

Nalacharitam

Unnayi Varier (1675 - 1755) who appeared on the scene after Kottayathu Tampuran was trying to develop kathakali to the frontiers of dramatics. A plot that fulfill all the requirements including a good beginning, middle portion and ending, varied and life - like characters, conversation imbued with emotions, the element of surprise in the execution of the story and final victory of the hero. Nalacharitam by Unnayi Varier is a faultless visual poem that includes all these dramatic apparel. A similar poetic attakkatha in Malayalam has not been composed before or after Unnayi Varier. The acquisition and impact of special attributes of the hero and heroine of Nalacharitham itself beautified the play. Unnayi Varier was not only a great attakkatha writer but also was a versatile genius in poetry; arts and music composition. Some great scholars have even called Nalacharitham as the Sakunthalam of Kerala.

Nalacharitham attakkatha was written as four parts, to be acted in four days.

These four parts are the story of the four different stages of life of Nala who is the hero of the play. They are his marriage with Damayanthi, their separation, Nala's alien life and their re-unification. In each part, the poet has tried to bring the characteristics of an attakkatha to perfection. The completeness of the original story, with its beginning, middle and ending parts has its impact in each single part. The diversity of scenes, and characterization, the strength of the theme, logical validity of the culminating part-such elements that should be attended to while composing a visual art have been effectively blended by Varier. The relational strength of the story, the style of the language and the element of conflict in the structure of the story are improving as the story progresses.

The Tiruvitamkur Rajas and Others

The Tiruvitamkur Rajas who were contemporaries of Unnayi Varier, like Karthika Tirunal (1724-1798) and Aswathy Tirunal, and great poets like Irayimman Tampi, Kareendran Tampuran and Mandapappally Ittirarissa Menon added a new chapter in the history of kathakali literature. They in fact developed a new path which was different from the system organised by Kottayathu Tampuran and Unnayi Varier. Their attakkatha took into account the importance of kathi attire, and the separate stipulations for romantic or soft padams. Equally reputed writers of attakkathas lived in central Kerala also. Kathakali writers like Kallekkulangara Raghava Varier (Ravanodbhavam) and Kalloor Namboodirippad (Balivijayam) also accepted the prominence of kathi attire (kathivesham). Among the attakkathas of this period, Rugmangada charitham and Santhanagopalam of Ittirarissa Menon, Ambareesha charitham of Ashwathy Tirunal which were devotional in nature, provide the silver linings of kathakali literature. In accordance with the advice of Kapplingattu Namboodiri, the Tiruvitamkur Rajas and the Kochi royal family have played an incomparable role in improving and developing the kathakali systems.

Among the middle generation of attakkatha writers, poet musician Irayimman Tampi and Kareendran Tampuran deserve more attention. Keechakavadham, Uthara swayamvaram and Dakshayagam are the best artistic works of Irayimman Tampi. Kilimanoor Kareendran Tampuran became important in the field of kathakali by the creation of Ravanavijayam alone. The harmonious combination of literature and music made these poets popular among the lovers of kathakali. Together with the simple but beautiful features of like, Irayimman Tampi showed extraordinary ability to depict the tense and deep expression in an equally appealing manner.

A number of attakathas were composed during the century after Irayimman Tampi. Many of the works produced were trivia which damaged the reputation oft attakkatha literature very seriously. A few among them, like the Duryodhanavadham by Vayaskara Mooss had stage appeal. The beginning of the twentieth century was a period of renaissance for attakkatha. Thadakavadham by V. Krishnan Tampi was the start of a new age in the history of attakkatha literature. After Nalacharitam, we have not had a better attakkatha for thematic perfection, character creation, and presentation of expressions.

The social and political awakening experienced after independence also affected kathakali. The organisation of Kalamandalam, the start of kathakali clubs and the foreign visits of their teams created important changes in the presentation and propagation of kathakali. Certain new writings and other works based on western writings and Biblical stories show a change in the path of attakkatha literature and its presentation. Some new works like Daveed vijayam, Snapaha charitham, Doctor foust, Rustom and Sorab, Abraham's sacrifice and King Lear have been well received by cultural societies both inside Kerala and outside including foreign countries.

Performing Techniques

The forms of attire, the four forms of acting and the various techniques in stage presentation of kathakali also merit consideration. Kathakali, though in a sense is a particular way of dramatic action, is certainly different from the modern form of dramatics, in its dressing systems, ways of action and stage arrangements. In this case, it is indebted to the ancient Indian dramatic systems like koodiyattom. The attires in kathakali do not represent individuals, but are manifestations of the three gunas of nature, i.e., satya (light or noble) rajas (aggressive) and tamas (darkness) represented by pacha, kathi and thadi respectively. Thus characters of the attakkatha who have similar attributes must have similar dressing systems also. The attire of important noble characters like Nala, Harischandra, Dharmaputra will be similar in form and action. Aggressive personalities like Ravana, Hiranya and Duryodhana will also have the same dressing system that is kathi. Characters of darkness like bali, baka or dussasana also will have a similar dress and it is called thadi. The dress in kathakali can be divided into many forms namely pacha, thadi, kathi, kari and minukku. It is because the face of important noble characters are painted with green colour that the dress is technically called pacha. The cheeks of the actors are coloured using rice flour (chutti), their eyes and eye-brows are painted with collyrium, lips are painted and thus the whole face is made unusually beautiful, and make the attire complete by using crown, shirt, skirt, upper garments and ornaments. There are specialists in the green room (chuttikkar) who help the actors in their dressing.

Kathi is a form of attire which is more imposing than pacha. The actor comes to the stage after thiranottam. It has many particularities when compared to pacha. The chutti paint will be more spread out, and the paint in the shape of a small ball (chuttippoovu) will be pasted on the tip of the nose and in the middle of the headband. The remaining attire is similar to that of pacha. There are two types of kathi attire, that is kurumkathi and nedumkathi. They make roaring sounds at the time of appearance and in between action.

Thadi has three types of dressing systems namely red, white and black, Terrible characters like Rakshasas, Asuras and some cruel kings appear in this attire - this is supposed to be the most horrifying character in kathakali. Thadi has some variation in the type of dressing, daubing and painting as well as bearing the crown. The name thadi was given because of the artificial beard below the lower jaw. Baka, Dussasana and the like wear red thadi, Hanuman, Nandikeswara and the like bear white beard while the characters like Kali in Nalacharitam are examples of black beard. Narasimham which appears as a terrible deity wears white beard.

Terrible characters like Kiratas and the women are also given kari dress. Kiratas are called male kari and rakshasis, female kari. Black colour is the most important part of this dress, and other colours are used to project blackness. The crowns and garments are more or less the same for both men and women characters of this group. A male kari will have feather like chutti on the face and the chuttippoovu on the tip of the nose. It will have a black artificial beard also. The face of female kari will be painted black and white spots made on them. The crown of kari is cylindrical in shape. The wild and brutish characters of Nalacharitham and the woman characters of Kiratam like Nakra Thundi and Shurpanakha are examples of men and women in the kari group.

At the same time minukku is generally intended for noble characters. Their faces are adorned with yellow coloured manayola powder. Minukku system is used by Brahman, Rishis and women characters. Also this is the system used by messengers, bards, chariot drivers, carpenter and washerman who represent the different castes of society. After painting their face, they apply collyrium to eyes and eye-brows. They also keep white moustache, redden lips and draw a white line over it, keep artifical hair in white or black in order to appear as a sage. Brahmanas will have head-dress, a cloth covering the chest and ornaments. Narada, and Vasishta will have a white beard and Viswamitra and Sukra will have a black beard. However characters like birds (Hamsam, Garuda for example), humorous characters like Vidyujjihva and terrible characters like Bhadrakali and kritya do not belong to any of these groups and their way of dressing are different. Certain characters in kathakali like Shurpanakha and Simhika, need to wear bloody attire. The appearance of bloody characters in kathakali is very rare.

The Four Histrionic Forms

There are mainly four kinds of action or histrionics as stipulated by the principles of dance drama advocated by Bharata. They are, angika (organic) vachika (wordly), aharya (stage arrangement or the like) and satvika (attributive). In kathakali but for vachika form all the other three forms are very significant. In koodiyattom as in drama the actor speaks, uses symbols and facial expressions and this is called vachika forms. But in kathakali the attappadams meant to convey the verbal concepts are sung from the background. The meaning of each padam sung by the Bhagavatar (musician) is represented through symbols and bodily expressions by the actors. Angika form consists of artful and well modulated movements of the different bodily organs and the entire body. The symbols (mudras) are the most important aspect of the angika form. The importance of symbols in organic action is that of the alphabet in oral speech. The actors express their ideas through the basic symbols proposed by Hastalakshanadeepika. These twenty four symbols are pathaka, mudrakhyam, kadakam, mushti, karthareemukham, shukathundam, kapitthakam, hamsapaksham, shikharam, hamsasyam, anjali, ardhachandram, mukuram, bhramaram, soocheemukham, pallavam, thripathakam, mrigasheersham, sarpasirassu, vardhamanakam, araalam, oornanabham, mukulam and kadakamukham.

When the pleasure and pain experienced by the characters are actualised through concentrated expressive modes it is called attributive action or satvikabhinaya. This is the same as expressive action. It is with eight attributive expressions that the actor manifests the emotions undergone by the character. They are named as sthambham, swedam, romancham, swarabhedam, vepadhu, vaivarnyam, ashru and pralayam.

From the sentence "Ehasatwam hi mana prabhava" it can be understood that satwa means that comes from the mind. There are nine aesthetic sentiments in kathakali and they are shringaram (romantic) hasyam (humorous), rowdram (fierce), veeram (chivalry), bhayanakam (dreadful), beebhalsam (horrifying) athbhutham (surprise) and shantham (quiet). These aesthetic expressions are shown by the actor in symbols with concentrated movements of his hands, eyes and mind.

In kathakali, aaharyam, is the arrangement of the stage and the dressing of the actors. Our early preceptors have not been very particular about the stage arrangements. This is not a very important factor in kathakali compared to the elaborate stage craft in other visual arts. If we have a seat, a lamp (nilavilakku) and a curtain the stage is complete. But when we come to the problem of dressing it is to be admitted that a lot of artificial decorations have come into its presentation. The general terms consist of the face paint (teppu) dambing (chutti) crown, varying dresses and ornaments.


The Vital Parts of Kathakali

There are eight vital parts in the performance of this art from the beginning to the end. They are keli, arangukely (suddamaddalam), thodayam, vandana slokam, purappad, melappadam, kathabhinayam and dhanashi. kelikottu is a function intended to announce the programme to the people nearby. Kelikottu was extremely important in an era when there were no printed notices. Chenda, maddalam, chengila and elathalam are the four instruments used for kelikottu and to provide the instrumental background (melam) for kathakali. Arangukeli or suddamaddalam begins after lighting the lamp for kathakali. After playing maddalam for a while, these artists retreat to a back position of the stage and hold a curtain (tirassila) in front. The next function is called thodayam which mark the commencement of the kathakali. This is a dance to propitiate the Gods for the unhindered success of kathakali. The actor sings the songs beginning with Harihara Vidhimuta and dances according to the four rhythms, chempada, champa, panchari and muriyadantha. Earlier, thodayam was performed behind the curtain. After thodayam, the singers hold the curtain on the stage and render the greeting slokas. Next is purappadu which has similarities with the initial statement in the earlier dramas indicating the storyline. This is an act that proceeds the actual story and not a part of it. There are separate verses and padams composed for purappadu. The actors appear in the stage for purappadu with the accompaniment of melkatti, alavattam and the beating of instruments. After dancing according to the rhythm, the actor disappears behind the curtain and reappears. This is repeated four times. The next stage is called nilappadam. After the fourth appearance, the musician sings the nilappadam. Then the actor who performed the purappadu comes forward, greets the audience and withdraws. Then the singers and the instrumentalists come forward and display their skill. This part is called melappadam.

Following melappadam, the musician sings the slokas for presenting the story on the stage. Then the characters of the story begin to appear. Kathi, thadi and kari characters appear in the statge with tiranottam - the part of the story will be sung by the singers in the background and the actors begin their performance by showing mudras in accordance with the padams. There are different forms of acting attom. They are cholliyattom, ilakiyattom, irunnattom, pakarnattom and tantedattom. Cholliyattom is the most important and strictly according to established procedure. The actor can make his own improvisations as he enters the stage, in the process of cholliyattom and towards the end. These fall in the sphere of elakiyattom. The attakkatha literature consist of both slokas for stage presentation and padams for dialogue. The story can be presented only if the actor is well versed in puranic literature.

Kalari and aniyara have a very important place in kathakali. Kalari transforms an ordinary novice into a gifted actor. The kalaris follow the gurukula system of instruction even now. Aniyara is the place where the elaborate attire that form a major part of the visual spectacle is made. The artists of the aniyara perform the face of transforming an ordinary man into God, asura or superhuman beings.

Dhanashi which is the last part of kathakali which is a dance by the actor appearing in the last scene of the story in accordance to the prayer song sung by the musician from behind. This is similar to the Bharatavakyam in ancient theatre. Some musicians used to recite a hymn from the great Narayaneeyam beginning as Yogeendranam.

Modern Trends

The middle of the twentieth century is a period of modernisation for kathakali.The founding of Kalamandalam under the initiative of Vallathol Narayana Menon and programmes given by them in many parts of India and foreign countries helped to propagate this art. It also gained recognition and laurels from the developed part of the world. In Delhi, Patna and Calcutta new kathakali centres were established. Several foreigners came to Kerala Kalamandalam and other centres and were enrolled as students. When the appreciation of kathakali in the foreign countries became manifest several art lovers began to form kathakali clubs in different parts of the state. V. Krishnan Tampi was the originator of the idea of kathakali clubs. The institution named kalavilasam founded by him in 1935 became the Tiruvananthapuram kathakali club. Thus by the end of 1960 kathakali clubs were established in all the major cities of Kerala.

In former days kathakali was an art centered only in the courtyards, temples and the houses of rich landlords. But today kathakali is performed mostly in auditoriums and town halls. With the emergence of kathakali clubs, there are changes in the mode of presentation and its duration. Formerly kathakali used to be performed fully and it prolonged from the sunset to the day break. This system still continues only in certain temples. In the clubs, the performance ends by about 10 p.m. Only a part of the story is selected, and the parts preceding the actual performance, including thodayam, purappad and melappadam are avoided. The present interest is to organize and perform the most dramatic part of the story with elaborate dress accompaniments within the time limit. This new system helped to attract a wider audience. Kathakali artists receive a very high remuneration when compared to their former unenviable position. Because of the patronage received from the connoisseurs, artists and the people, many kathakali clubs are functioning effectively.

Kathakali is a genuine classical art. There is an opinion that in order to transform kathakali into a popular art, certain reforms are necessary. But in the name of reform, some people introduce distorted and awkward forms. However changes in a technical visual art like kathakali can be brought out only after very careful consideration. Reforms in kathakali have a long history. Ramanattom which was presented by Kottarakkara Tampuran was later reformed by Vettathu Raja. From that time onwards many eminent actors, musicians and experts of musical instruments had effected certain changes.

Ottan Thullal

Thullal is the solo-dance which tells a story, normally drawn from puranic legends, through verbal acting and miming. Compared to koodiyattom and kathakali the mode of dancing and miming are simple and the language used in the performance can communicate with the ordinary people directly.

The origins of thullal should be seen from the background of seventeenth and eighteenth century Kerala, when this art form took shape. The Brahmanic temple centered cultural forms including koothu and koodiyattom were showing signs of stagnation, unable to break new grounds in their own stipulated paths. New linguistic and visual forms were emerging, as shown by the growth of vernacular poetry initiated by Cherusseri, Poonthanam and Ezhuthassan. Efforts were on to combine folk traditions prevalent in various parts of Kerala, with puranic themes and traditional forms of performance, as shown by the growth of krishnanattom and ramanattom and finally kathakali. Moreover, patronage was accorded to a large number of temple festivals and rituals like pooram, theyyam and thira and patayani all of them having roots in the popular traditions. This together with the bhakti forms resulted in the temples having a different identity as popular socio-religious centres.

Changes were taking place in the social structure. The traditional ruling class consisting of naduvazhi chiefs and Brahmanas, found themselves confronted by powerful non-Brahmana madampis and land-owners. New ruling families emerged and local chiefs held absolute jurisdiction in their respective areas. These groups patronised the growth of new linguistic and cultural forms. The crisis in the medieval social system was manifested in the emergence of the Tiruvitamkur state by uprooting the powers of the madampis and attempting to build a new political and administrative structure.

Kunchan Nambiar, the major exponent of the art of thullal lived in these times. He was witness to the changing social structure and cultural forms. He sought to develop a new style in performing arts which could directly communicate with the people, unlike koodiyattom and even kathakali which could be appreciated only by the elite who were conversant with the idiom. The result was that he composed a number of poems, based on puranic themes which could be enacted in the form of thullal.

There are three forms of thullal, ottan thullal, parayan thullal, and seethankan thullal. It is possible that parayan and seethankan forms pre-dated the ottan form, in which Nambiar wrote and enacted most of his poems. All the forms had its origin in the folk dances, particularly from patayani performed in the temples in central Tiruvitamkur. The major change made was the use of puranic themes instead of folk themes. However, under the overall framework of puranic themes, the popular element is preserved in the form of local meters, singing and enacting styles. Kunchan Nambiar made it rise to another level by bringing in the element of trenchant social criticism particularly against the degenerate tendencies of the age. The element of satirisation of social mores already existed in koothu, in the background of the medieval social crisis. Nambiar also apparently infused considerable knowledge of music, style of dancing and linguistic variations into his art, thus developing it into a perfect blend of a popular solo-dance-drama.

However, thullal tradition apparently did not survive Kunchan Nambiar. There were other thullals by Ambayatt Panickar and a few others, but they lack the quality of Kunchan Nambiar. Writing and performing thullal was not taken up as a serious profession, unlike other traditional art forms. It is at present difficult to locate a definite reason as why this happened, but there is a definite possibility that thullal fell out of favour with royal courts as being a 'vulgar' form compared to the sophisticated kathakali, classical music and dances including mohiniyattom. In the background of the traditional social order, even the composition of thullal required considerable familiarity both with the folk medium and the aristocratic art forms and music, which was something unimaginable for the popular artists who worked within their limited means, with little patronage from aristocratic circles. The aristocratic circles used thullal in a lighter vein as humorous and satirical poetry, and thus undermine the tremendous potential that this form had as an artistic expression of social satire and protest.

Mohiniyattom

To trace the origin and development of a particular culture or art tradition, the history of the particular region or country has to be fully understood. Until ninth century A.D. the region that is known as Kerala was a part of the old Tamilakam. At that time Kerala had its cultural entity only as a part of that old Tamil culture and civilization, perhaps with varying degrees of colloquial and regional differences and variations. There was nothing there which could be termed as typical of Kerala culture as we understand it today. Even the language was Tamil with slight dialectical variation. It is hardly thousand years since this region has begun developing its own language, culture and art forms. Even for this, the basic structure is that of the old Tamil or dravida culture. So it is evident that a study of Kerala cultural and historical traditions can be done only as a part of the study of a wider Tamil history and culture.

This is more relevant in the case of Kerala dance forms. In the famous book Chilappathikaram written by Elanko Adikal, a prince of the Cera kingdom, of which the present Kerala was a part, detailed mention is made of the various dance forms prevalent in this area at that time. The book believed to have been written in seventh or eighth century A.D. makes it clear that dances of Aryan tradition were prevalent here during these days. Mention is also made of the institution of devadasis assigned for various chosen duties connected with the temples. From among these devadasis, a particular group was selected and trained for the performance of dances and they were known as koothachies. References about these koothachies are also seen in later rock edicts, copper plates, literary works etc. According to them, these koothachies apart from being proficient in the art of dance and music were also highly respected scholars. They were affluent and had very high social status. With the success of the bhakti movement in south India it is presumed that these dancers, through their right to perform dance offerings in the temples, acquired positions of importance and influence in the society. There are evidences to show the existence of a powerful group of devadasis in almost all the important temples of south India at that time.

The oldest rock-edict referring to them in Kerala is that of Chokkoor temple in Ponnani taluk which is believed to be of A.D. 932. Evidences are also there at the temples of Nedumpram Tali (1218) Tiruvalla (eleventh century) and Kandiyoor (1200). Sculptures showing the dance forms prevalent in those days are seen in the temples of Thirukkulasekharapuram, Thrivikramamangalam, Kidangoor, Ettumanoor, Thrikkodithanam and Thirunavaya.

The first reference to devadasis in a literary work is in the Siva bhakthi keerthanamala written by Ceraman Perumal Nayanar in A.D. eighth century. Detailed description of devadasis are seen in the literary works Unniyachi Charitam, Unnuneeli Sandesam, Kaunothara, Utharachandrika and Vaisika Thanthram written before fifteenth century. These books give evidence regarding the devadasi centres at Odanadu, Kandiyoor (south Kerala) Mathilakam, Kodungalloor, Trissoor, Chokiram (central Kerala), Thirumaruthoor, Thrichambaram and Pallikkunnu (north Kerala), Siva vilasom written by Damodara Chakyar and Suka sandesam also contain references to the temple dances prevalent during those days.

After the fall of the Cera empire political power was transferred to the local feudal chieftains and a number of petty principalities sprang up. The devadasis might have had to change their loyalties to those new emerging class of social lords with the result that they had to satisfy their moral whims and fancies as well. Consequently their art suffered and social status declined. In course of time they began to be considered as outcasts from the main stream of cultural life. Chandrotsavam a literary work of the fifteenth century depicts this decline and degradation in vivid detail. By sixteenth century the devadasi system became completely extinct in Kerala. A few of the members of the erstwhile devadasi families here and there, who could not manage economic self-sufficiency were the only persons who still practised their old dancing tradition. And this itself was due to dire necessity for sustenance and daily existence. In their frantic effort to earn atleast a meagre livelihood from the one and only profession they knew, these dancers went to the extent of performing according to the demands of the audience, whether voluptuous, vulgar or erotic. It was in this form that the great dance tradition of the devadasis survived in Kerala. As per reference in the commentary to Vyavaharamala (1700) the dance existed in and around Trivandrum in the name of mohiniyattom. There is also a mention about mohiniyattom in the Ghoshayatra, ottan thullal written by the eighteenth century poet Kunchan Nambiar, Karthika Tirunal Rama Varma's Balaramabharatham, a treatise on the techniques and science of dance is another evidence.

The present day mohiniyattom has evolved from the regional variation of dasiyattom which was prevalent in south India. This regional variation of dasiyattom was known as avinayakkoothu. The main feature of this dance is the rhythmic interpretation of the meaning of songs with hand gestures and body actions. The basic approach is the same in present day mohiniyattom as well. Here also the meaning of the song is brought out through the movements of eyes, brows, hand gestures and dance. The musical instruments used like the kuzhithalam, tudi, mukhaveena etc., are also the same. From avinayakkoothu to mohiniyattom it might have been a long process of evolution involving addition, elimination and experimentation.

There is no reason to believe that this was a dance popular with the masses. It was performed only as a votive offering in the temples. Even among the limited few who had permission to enter temples, only very few regarded it as something more than another ritual like the ashtapadi music at the sanctum sanctorum. Even after leaving temple precincts for the patronage of feudal chieftains, the audience remained extremely restricted to the kith and kin of the particular chieftain who sponsored the performance. And during the succeeding period of decline when it acquired notoriety as vulgar, sensual and erotic audience could be described as almost nil.

This is the background in which mohiniyattom, inspite of it being a traditional and religious art could not become popular in the land of its origin. By the end of seventeenth century its decline reached the zenith having failed to make its lingering presence felt atleast in the mansions of the feudal overlords after the unceremonious exit from temple precincts. Due to certain peculiar historical reasons a different process had effected the art in same part of central Kerala. With the disintergration of the Cera empire with its headquarters as Thiruvanchikulam the devadasi society there also got disintegrated. An exodus in search of fresh pastures brought groups of them to the near by temples of Mathilakom, Pazhayanoor, Korattikkara, Chokiram, Chokkoor, Trissoor etc., These temples were centres of chakyars, nambiars and nangiars who were great exponents of the Sanskritic styles of dance and drama performance like prabhandhakoothu, nangiar koothu, koodiyattom etc. The new settlers adopted many techniques regarding expressive acting, hand gestures etc. from nangiarkoothu thus giving a new dimension and orientation to their own avinayakkoothu. Here more importance was given to acting than to dancing. The nattuvan (the dance-director) himself used to come to the stage beating rhythm with a musical instrument and performing a dance of sorts with rhythmic steps followed by the danseuse, who danced singing her own songs and acting with the help of hand gestures, movements of eyes, eye-brows and body flexions. It must be remembered that until recently it was the mohiniyattom danseuse herself who used to sing the songs while performing. In course of time this dance got influenced by kathakali in its steps, stance and gestures. This short-lived attempt to convert itself into a secular and social art form also abruptly ended because of the social structure, economic relations and environment which were least conducive to such a process of transformation and slow evolution. The moral degradation of the devadasi system and the stigma which came to be attached even to the name koothachi only added to its already deteriorating fortune.

It was at this time that the great Swati Tirunal, the Maharaja of Tiruvitamkur (1829-1847) came to the scene. Himself a poet and music composer of rare genius the Maharaja was a great connoisseur of performing arts. It was he who took initiative to promote and encourage this dying dance tradition of dasiyattom giving it a new vigour, form and content. With the help of famous dance nattuvans of Tamil Nadu like, Vadivelu, Chinnayya, Ponnayya and Sivanandan, Swati Tirunal brought in a refreshingly new style of choreography giving it a discipline, a compact presentation form and syllabus of study. He himself wrote a number of padams and varnams for which he got music composed by Palakkad Parameswara Bhagavathar, his own court musician. He also encouraged poets like Irayimman Tampi, Kilimanoor Koil Tampuran and Kuttikunju Tankachi to write padams and varnams. He also invited the famous dancers of Tamil Nadu, Neerajakshi, Sathyabhama and Sugandhavalli to his court for dance performances based on these new compositions. Thus it was in the royal court of Swati Tirunal that mohiniyattom had its first days of glory and acclaim. Simple and graceful body movements and steps, slow and soft patterns of gestural language, subtle facial expressions of various emotions and above all the captivating lasya dance were the main features of this art form. Though keeping the basic structure of bharathanatyam it showed faint influence of kathakali in hand gestures, foot-steps and facial expressions. The full white costume with ornate borders and the various new types of ornaments and make-up were also the innovations of the Maharaja. The instruments used were the same old viz., kuzhithalam, thudi and thoppi maddalam. The items presented were also more or less similar to those in bharathanatyam as evolved from dasiyattom. In bharathanatyam, the items are allarippu, jathiswaram, sabdam, varnam, padam, thillana, javeli and slokam. In mohiniyattom, the difference is only with regard to two. Instead of allarippu, it is cholkettu in mohiniyattom, and in the place of jathiswaram it is swarajit (It may be remembered that now-a-days it is jathiswaram in both). It may also be of interest to note that the first item in dasiyattom was also known as cholkettu as in the later day mohiniyattom.

The new found glory and acclaim of this dance was also short-lived as it was destined to be restricted to palace precincts and performed by danseuses called for specially from Tamil Nadu. Locally nobody turned up even to be trained in this art. This was all because of the decadence of the devadasi system and the notoriety and stigma associated with the dancers as a class. With the death of Swati Tirunal in 1847 it was almost the end. Maharaja Uthram Tirunal who followed was not interested in mohiniyattom and so he dismissed the court dancers. Palakkad Parameswara Bhagavathar who left the Tiruvitamkur court, functioned as a nattuvan for a time in central Kerala trying to train a new generation in the new form of mohiniyattom with a sort of mix-up of the traditional style prevalent in that area with that of the style enunciated and put to practice by Swathi Tirunal. Even this did not succeed. By this time mohiniyattom had ceased to be a temple art and had failed to establish itself as a social art.

This was because of the low taste and standard in content of the dance and the lack of social acceptance and recognition to the dancing girls who were predominantly from the uneducated and ill-equipped devadasi background. The dance form had improved technically with higher levels of presentation methods and was developing into a classical mould. But the untrained, uneducated and indisciplined performers could neither understand the meanings of the text and interpret it nor could they cope with the choreographic demands of the revived form. This along with solo attempts of dancers to step out from the stage into the midst of the audience and try physical tickling of the individual audience were the limits, the then social more, could stand. The dance was thus doomed for a natural extinction.

It was then for the second time in its chequered history came another saviour, now in the form of Mahakavi Vallathol Narayana Menon. Having understood the potentials of this dance form he, with the help of Shri. Mukunda Raja planned elaborate steps for its revival. He also made arrangements for imparting training in mohiniyattom at the Kerala Kalamandalam established by him and appointed Shri. Korattikkara Krishna Panicker and Mankurissi Kalyani Amma as teachers.

Vallathol had very high aesthetic concepts and art criterion in the revival of mohiniyattom. He wanted its sanctity and tradition as a temple art to be maintained. Devotional love with its religious touch was kept as the main theme. The grace and beauty of the dasiyattom dance style and the expressive action and gestural code of kathakali were mixed in the most suitable proportion to give a new coherence and discipline and structural competence. Changes were also effected in the costumes, make-up and musical instruments. The stage presentation also was completely reoriented to suit the modern techniques of audio-visual facilities and audience taste. Vallathol also encouraged a new generation of girls from all starts of society to learn this dance thus obliterating the bad name left over by the latter-day devadasis.

Now mohiniyattom has acquired the status of one of the more known of classical dances in India and has also became very popular with the masses.

Costume, Music and Dancing

In mohiniyattom, the face of the dancer is made up of yellow and pink paste. She wears white jackets and white sari. The dancer decorates her tied-up hair with jasmine flowers. The eyes are blackened and the lips reddened. With necklaces, bangles, waistlet and anklets, the mohiniyattom dancer enters the stage for a solo performance.

The style of vocal music for mohiniyattom, as is generally seen, is classical Karnatic. The lyrics composed by Maharaja Swathi Tirunal and Irayimman Tampi are in manipravalam (mixture of Sanskrit and Malayalam). Swati Tirunal was a great composer and musician. He has contributed much to the classical music tradition of south India. Irayimman Tampi was a member of the royal court of Swati Tirunal. Tampi's lyrics have a unique charm by form and content. Till recently, thoppimaddalam (small size maddalam) and veena provided the background music of mohiniyattom. These have been replaced in recent years by mridangam and violin. Edakka was also used for mohiniyattom for a long time.

The theme of mohiniyattom is devotion to and love of God. The lover is more often Lord Vishnu. The love-lorn heroine pines for him or gets angry with him. There is enormous scope for the dancer to improvise and delineate the many subtle links of sringara. The movements exhibit a feminine charm and are executed usually in a slow tempo. With delicate steps and circular movements, the dancer represents the unique lasya tradition of Kerala. The invocation in mohiniyattom is known as cholkettu. Varnam and padam are the major items in mohiniyattom that bring out the best in a talented danseuse. Recently there have been creative efforts on the part of well-known danseuses in Kerala and outside to develop mohiniyattom into a full-fledged classical dance.

Chavittunatakam

Chavittunatakam is one of traditional dance-drama forms in Kerala, performed by Christian community. The name originates from the rhythmic stamping (chavittu) by the performers. This form is an adaptation of koodiyattom based on Christian themes, with some ingredients of western opera. Chavittunatakam originated around sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when foreign Christian missionaries tried to adapt Christian religious themes to the local conditions and develop a presentable theatrical form, which could be understood by the Kerala audience.

Chavittunatakam is different from kathakali (which also developed in Kerala simultaneously) in many ways. Kathakali is dependent on miming and physical expressions, but chavittunatakam depends on verbal acting. The element of drama is more important in chavittunatakam than kathakali. Chavittunatakam also does not follow the elaborate forms of dressing to represent superhuman characters, but adopts a more simple style suitable to the human characters in Christian themes. Only certain characters like satan, dragons etc. have elaborate forms of dressing, similar to kari in kathakali.

Chavittunatakam is a musical drama with songs in Tamil meter; sung by the actors themselves with musical accompaniment of chenda and elathalam, maddalam, mridangam, harmonium, nadaswaram, Flute and Fiddle are also used. The rhythmic stamping is extremely important; it not only sets the tone of the drama, but also provides variations in expression among the characters. There are sixteen types of basic chuvadu with a number of variations like irattippu, kalasam, idakkalasam and kavittam in each chuvadu. Chavittunatakam has also a martial aspect as war scene is an essential ingredient of the performance. The dress worn by the characters include western forms including helmet, breast plate, boots, gloves etc. The natakam is performed on open stage which has thirty metres length and nine metres width and 2.7 metres high. Very often the Elizabethan style of double storeyed stage was constructed with wooden planks, which meant that the rhythmic stamping created an unpleasant noise. This feature has earned for chavittunatakam the nickname thattupolippan. Recently chavittunatakam has been performed in ordinary stage.

The instruction on chavittunatakam is given by asan or annavi, who gives elaborate training on chuvadu, martial arts, and the enactment of drama (cholliyattam). The style of its performance has great similarities with kathakali whereas forms of acting and dancing has similarities with European opera and Ballet. The major themes played as Caralman charitram, Genovanatakam, Geevarghese charitram, and Napoleon charitram.

With the development of modern drama forms, chavittunatakam is fast receding into oblivion. Unlike kathakali, there has not been many persons interested in reviving this art form and ensuring its sustenance.

Kathaprasangam

Story telling had developed as a form of art in ancient period. The necessity felt by the brahmanas to explain the Sanskrit poems in simple language resulted in the institution of pattathanam attached to temples, where mahabharatabhattas explained the stanzas of Mahabharata to the devotees. During medieval period, the slokas from various champus and other Sanskrit poems were used by story tellers to narrate a story, and this form of story telling came to be called pathakam.

Pathakam was normally done by a single individual, who narrated the story interspersed with songs and a large number of anecdotes, and with some amount of acting. He had musical accompaniment also. Pathakams were conducted with temple festivals and were meant for the larger audience coming to the festivals. There was another form called kuttapathakam which had the characteristics of a drama.

Pathakam received considerable encouragement from the rulers of eighteenth century, particularly in Tiruvitamkur, where pathakam incorporated popular ingredients as in the case of tullal. However, like tullal, pathakam began to decline by nineteenth century, and at present pathakam is hardly enacted, and there are no gifted artists in the field.

During nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, another form of story telling called harikatha came into vogue, mainly under Tamil influence. This involved narration of stories with bhakti themes mainly related to Krishna-Vishnu and puranic legends. Harikatha used the Tamil idioms and Tamil songs, and the narratives often continued for several days, which was called harikatha kalakshepam. Harikatha also was conducted along with temple ceremonies and festivals.

With the onset of renaissance in Kerala, many of the temple oriented art forms underwent secularisation, and new forms developed. Secular themes were brought into story telling performances also. Artists with nationalistic and radical persuasions found in story telling a powerful medium to encapture the audiences. This form received patronage from social protest movements, like the Sree Narayana Movement. Thus a new form of story telling emerged called kathaprasangam (Story-oration).Kathaprasangam is one of the most popular forms in central and southern Kerala, and at present spreading into northern Kerala also. Secular themes, which have inspirational and emotive value are normally chosen. Most of the artists have radical persuasion, and often select themes that conveys a social message. Great works by Shakespeare, Ibsen, Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, Victor Hugo and others have been adapted by these artists. Many outstanding novels and stories by Malayalam writers have also been adapted. The artist narrates the story interspersed by songs and anecdotes, which often beat the mark of sharp social criticism, with the accompaniment of a few musical instruments like violin and harmonium. A kathaprasangam performance lasts two-three hours, but some gifted artists are known to give even all night performances. Kathaprasangam is a unique form that has grown along with the secular and democratic movements.

Explanatory Notes

Music in Kathakali

The function of vocal music in kathakali is the musical recitation of the repertoire for the actor to translate the text into gestures, movements and expressions. Of the two singers, the first singer (pinnani) keeps the steady beat of the thala (rhythmic pattern) by using the chengalam, made of bell metal. He holds it in the left hand and beats with a stick to mark the rhythm. The supporting singer (sangiti) follows the first and also keeps the thala by using elathalam a pair of large bell-metal hand cymbols. With its close affinity towards temple music, kathakali music is identified with sopana music (sopana sangeetham). The word sopana means "stairs" and the phrase sopana style is said to have derived from the singing during the ritual ceremony near the steps to the sanctum-sanctorum of the temple. Reputed musicologists of south India hold that sopana sangeetham is at best a distinct style of singing rather than a different school of music independently developed in Kerala. In kathakali music, the style is more expansive and dramatic. The clarity of the text and the creation of the bhava or emotional mood of the characters are functionally the most important in kathakali music. Mundaya Venkitakrishna Bhagavathar a veteran karnatic musician reformed kathakali music towards the beginning of this century to make it scientifically and technically sound. With a due emphasis on the visual impact of kathakali music, the reforms of Bhagavathar became convincing even to the well-disciplined karnatic musicians. The vocalists in kathakali who render the vachikabhinaya (verbal acting) are no less important than the actors. As a reform in kathakali music, harmonium as a drone instrument came to be used. However, the percussion instruments set limits to the use of harmonium as the basic sruti of kathakali music.

Chenda: Of the three major percussion instruments used in kathakali, chenda comes first in importance, it is a cylindrical drum, somewhat less than three feet in length, usually made of jackwood and covered on both sides with cowhide. Tension cords passing through loops or rings are used to heighten or lower the pitch in tuning. The left end or itanthala is covered with one piece of leather, the right end or valanthala has six or seven additional circles of leather of diminishing diameters glued on the inside. The chenda is vertically hung on the artists shoulder and he plays it with two small curved tip sticks. Ordinarily in kathakali the itanthala is played. On occasions such as a deity assuming his cosmic form or interfering in human affairs, the valanthala is played. The valanthala is also played for some of the tantri rituals of Kerala temples. The chenda is played with one hand and one stick or with two sticks.

Maddalam: The maddalam is a double-headed drum of about three to three and a half feet length. It has a convex shape similar to the mridangam of south India. Its head is at the right and is of ox-hide and the left of buffalo hide. The maddalam is hung in a horizontal position by a cloth which passes at the back of the waist. It is played only with the hands. The right hand has finger stalls made of a mixture of rice paste and calcified lime applied to strips of cloth wound about the fingers and allowed to harden. The sound produced is melodious with ringing overtones. From beginning till end, maddalam is the only background instrument played to accompany all padams (songs) regardless of which class of character is being portrayed. For female characters, maddalam is the single major vadya used in kathakali.

Edakka: Shaped like an hour-glass, the edakka has two heads, each covered with an animal membrane. In length, the drum is about twelve to fourteen inches. It has tension strings manipulated with the left hand as the head is beaten with a curved slender stick, usually of sandalwood, held in the right hand. Through manipulation of the tension cords, all octaves can be achieved by an accomplished musician. Edakka is hung by a cloth passing over the left shoulder. In kathakali, edakka is used along with the maddalam for padams in which female characters are portrayed. It provides bhava and laya (erotic) scenes in kathakali. It also lends a good support to acting in koodiyattom and mohiniyattom.

Chengalam (Gongs): It is a circular bronze instrument of about eight inches diameter. The chief vocalist (pinnani) uses the gong by striking on it with a stick to mark the accented beats of rhythm.Elathalam: (Cymbals): The supporting musician (sangiti) handles the cymbals. The purpose is the same as that of the Gongs. Small cymbals are also used in mohiniyattom, koodiyattom and thullal.

The Northern and the Southern style of Learning

Kathakali in its gradual development in the early part of this century was patronised in Kochi, Malabar and Tiruvitamkur by the provincial rulers and feudal lords. Two different styles of acting had originated in north and south Kerala. In Malabar, it was known as vettathu nadu style which in course of time was linked with the kalladikodan style. Towards the beginning of this century, a new style developed in Vellinezhi, small village in the south Malabar by Kalluvazhi Kuyilthodi Ittirarichira Menon. This is now the highly acclaimed kalluvazhi style that is taught in Kalamandalam and widely recognized as the northern style. The credit for this mainly goes to Pattikkamthodi Ravunni Menon, the greatest exponent of the style.

Although there were illustrious actors in the south Kerala, a common style of learning did not emerge to establish a universal recognition. Mathoor, Kidangoor, Kurichi and Thakazhi kalaries were the five major centres of learning Tiruvitamkur to preserve and promote the southern style in kathakali. Connoisseurs of the southern style have held that kaplingad style originated in central Kerala but found its full entity in the southern tradition. Of these, the Thakazhi style of kathakali alone survived during the cultural renaissance period. This is the result of the pioneering efforts of Karthika Tirunal Maharaja of Tiruvitamkur to unify all the different styles in south Kerala. Among the celebrated artists of the southern style, Mathoor Kunju Pillai Panicker and Thottam Sankaran Namboodiri were outstanding in respect of discipline and portrayal of subtle emotions. In the years that followed after them, it was left to the task of late Guru Chengannoor Raman Pillai, the best spokesman of the Thakazhi style to promote and popularise the south style of learning and acting. His relentless efforts account for the continued existence of the southern style in kathakali through his distinguished disciples and writings. In July 1966, the southern style of training was added to the curriculum of Kerala Kalamandalam to give a fresh impetus to it under the best available teachers.

Ottan Thullal

As a solo-dance, ottan thullal often reflects the literary, artistic and cultural life of the medieval Kerala. This theatrical art was evolved from some of the classical and folk art forms. In ottan thullal, stories from epics are retold in simple Malayalam poetry and the stylised singing shows the beauty of the Dravidian meters used.

The performer sings, together with a supporting singer and through the classical acting techniques, he portrays the various characters in an episode and does the narration. Realistic acting establishes an easy rapport between the performer and beholder. Harmonium and mridangam give the background besides vocal music.

In make-up and costumes, thullal has the trace of the colour and gorageousness of kathakali. The face is painted with yellow arsenic mixed with blue. The eyes are blackened and lips reddened. The dancer wears a breast-plate adorned with golden pearls, necklaces and colourful tassels. The white waist clothes resemble skirts. The head-gear is small, made of light wood, studded with bright stones and decorated with golden paper. The bracelets, amulets and waistlets are almost the same as in kathakali. By and large, the aharya is most simple taking much from the folk-arts

The three kinds of thullal - ottan, seethankan and parayan are mainly differentiated on the basis of aharya (make-up and dressing). Late Malabar Raman Nayar introduced some improvements in this art to make it more impressive. As an excellent performer, his refined style gained immense popularity among the elite and ignorant. Kalamandalam has been engaged in the further promotion of thullal through training and performance. Kalamandalam Divakaran Nair, a veteran in the field, is in the faculty for many years.