Kerala   

On a ‘catch-them-old’ drive

Jealousy. Anger. Self-pity. Alternatively. Jealousy towards Ganga, anger towards husband Siva, and self-pity towards herself. Many emotions flickered on Parvathi’s face. Margi Madhu, the Koodiyattom exponent, was enacting the fast-changing facial expressions of Goddess Parvathi, who suspects a secret liaison between River Ganga and her husband Lord Siva.

Even as the embittered Parvathi walks out on Siva and scales down Mount Kailasa, Ravana jolts the mountain for blocking his personal carrier Pushpak’s flight path. Shaken and scared, Parvathi returns to the open arms of Siva and the two are joined again in marital bliss.

Madhu enacted this scene from ‘Kailaasodhaaranam-Parvathi Viraham’ of ‘Thorana Yudham’ to highlight the enormous acting challenges of Koodiyattom, the highly stylised Kerala version of the ancient Sanskrit theatre. At a lecture-demonstration here on Sunday, Madhu, along with dancer-wife Indu, and five-year-old son Sri Hari, delineated the intricacies of this ancient temple art form.

The programme — supported by Bank Employees Arts Movement Ernakulam (BEAME) and sponsored by the Central government’s Department of Culture — was part of the Thripunithura-based International Centre for Kutiyattam’s efforts to popularise the action-packed dance-theatre. The centre is now on a ‘catch them old’ promotion drive to attract more adult viewers to Koodiyattom.

It is the acting brilliance of the performer that makes Koodiyattom a class apart from other forms of dance-theatre, Madhu says. Though within a stylised context, Koodiyattom gives the actor much freedom to express the character’s emotions. The solo performer expresses a rainbow of emotions in seconds’ gap. The text is only a springboard for the performer to exhibit his acting capability. “A Koodiyattom performer often acts out a single ‘sloka’ for two or three hours, improvising and innovating on the sloka’s theme on the way,” Madhu pointed out. “The actor is the soul of Koodiyattom, not the text or the author.”

An important aspect of Koodiyattom is ‘Pakarnnaattom’— the same solo performer acting different characters instantaneously with a slight change in costume. The hero transforms into the heroine in a split second and changes from one emotion to another with ease.

“The role of the viewer is extremely critical in Koodiyattom,” says Madhu. “I would say the relative importance of the performer and the viewer is fifty-fifty. The viewer fills in the space left blank by the performer, adds meaning to the performance.” The musical instrument ‘mizhavu’ creates the sound atmosphere.

Koodiyattom, said to be some 800 years old, is not a mass entertainment. It is meant to be performed for, and appreciated by, a small audience of ‘rasikas. But, with a little effort, Madhu contends, ordinary people can understand and enjoy it. The International Centre for Kutiyattam is now trying to hook the average Malayali to this ancient art form.

K.P.M. Basheer

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