Dance of the heroes

RANI SASIKUMAR

For a few students in Thiruvananthapuram, January 14 provided relief from the school grind.

Aharyam, angikam and vachikam (types of acting) replaced theorems and tables. The chenda and the maddalam (traditional percussion instruments) took over from set squares and dividers. Alphabets and grammar gave way to mudras (gestures). And the heroes of the epics replaced the Mauryas and the Mughals.

The lights dimmed and the sound of the maddalam signalled the beginning of the event.

The Kerala State Science and Technology Museum auditorium came alive with mythological characters sketching the tussle between good and evil.

The occasion was a Kathakali appreciation programme, conducted by The Hindu-Young World as part of its Newspaper in Education project. Dr. P. Venugopalan, Kathakali expert and editor of Malayalam Lexicon, Kerala University, was the director of the event.

The experience was simply out of the world, as Ayesha Sasikumar, a participant, found. "Damayanti and Poothana gave you company in the morning, and after lunch, you met Krishna, Bheema, Panchali, Duryodhana and Dussasana. Who wouldn't be thrilled at having such greats for company?" she smiled.

Inaugurating the event, maestro Kalamandalam Gopi said Kathakali was complex, but not incomprehensible as it is made out to be. "Understanding Kathakali, you understand your culture and, thus, yourself. Watching the art form regularly is the key to unravelling its mysteries. Once you understand it, you will be hooked on to this breathtaking interplay of literature and music, dance and tableau, drama and philosophy, idealism and dream."

The success of any lecture-demonstration lies in the rapport that the presenter strikes with the audience. Ettumanoor Kannan, up- and-coming Kathakali artiste, donned the garb of a storyteller as he explained the intricacies and nuances of mudras, the alphabets of Kathakali. He demonstrated how words, sentences and paragraphs were created by suitably stringing together these alphabets.

Kannan Venu, a Std. V student of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, will cherish the moments he spent on stage, aping Kannan's gestures.

Aswathy Joseph, a Std. VIII student, said, "Oh, I always thought Kathakali was boring. I stand corrected. Watching these great artistes perform was indeed an enlightening experience."

Ten-year-old Ammu Gayatri is not new to Kathakali. When her family lived in Kochi, she has often accompanied her father to watch performances at the Tripunithura Academy. For her, Bheema and Poothana are not new faces.

Musician Kalamandalam Haridas explained how classical and Sopana ragas were employed in Kathakali. He made the children sing their favourite film songs, and then demonstrated how the raga on which each was based, was adapted to Kathakali music. Several ragas, including Ahiri, Mukhari, Kalyani and Kanada, flowed in his sweet voice.

"Why aren't the Kathakali adaptation of non-mythological stories not too successful?" Aswathy Karanavar wondered. "The framework of Kathakali has been determined by a culture that has evolved over hundreds of years, shaped by the ideas and skills of generations of practitioners, and meticulously set to interpret a larger-than-life vision, dream and nostalgia," explained V. Kaladharan, research officer, Kerala Kalamandalam.

Fourteen-year-old Ajai Tilak came to the programme to get a better understanding of music and costumes. He keenly watched make-up (chutti) expert R. L. V. Somadas' display of his craft.

A major attraction of the programme was the staging of the spectacular play, "Duryodhana Vadham", with Kalamandalam Gopi playing Raudra Bheema. This episode from the Mahabharatha showed the valiant Pandava overpowering the Kaurava chiefs, Dussana (Margi Murali) and Duryodhana (Ettumanoor Kannan). At the end of it all, he asked Krishna, "Why did you make me do all this?"

Krishna was all smiles. "That was your duty," he replied.

At the end of the day, the children resolved to watch Kathakali in right earnest, and the satisfaction of time well-spent was palpable.

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