Kerala   

Work means play, even at 80

Kavalam Narayana Panicker

Thiruvananthapuram: Playwrights such as Kavalam Narayana Panicker gave a new lease of life to Malayalam drama that had hit a plateau following a spurt of creativity in the heydays of the KPAC, Education Minister M.A. Baby said. He was inaugurating ‘Niravu’ the three-day cultural festival-cum-felicitation programme organised by friends and fans of Kavalam on the occasion of the playwright’s 80th birthday on April 19.

“The creations of Kavalam have no flab. They are firm and lean like the man himself. I am sure he will be active in the field even when he is ninety. Semmangudi, who gave a concert at the Rashtrapathi Bhavan when he was ninety years old, comes to mind now. Kavalam is the Semmangudi of drama,” Mr. Baby said.

Though Malayalam has a long and rich tradition of drama, the popular versions were those that had a Tamil origin. It used to be a musical feast with singers such as S.D. Kittappa performing to an audience in a freshly harvested paddy field.

From then on there was an evolution in Malayalam drama and subsequently there were interventions of the KPAC.

Then there was a lull in this sector, Mr. Baby said.

Stories in this Section

City police caught in a ‘rotation’ trap Law & order
AIYF activists injured in lathi-charge
Stirring social conscience
Honouring a veteran
The campaign goes on…
Appointment of retired engineers draws flak
Indian killed in freak accident
Agricultural training institute opened
VACB probe at a standstill
Swami Agnivesh backs land struggle
Award presented to writer
Work means play, even at 80
CPI(ML) faction to join CPI(M)
Elected
A Nehruvian agriculture policy revisited
Next issue
‘Cyanide’ Mallika in Mysore police custody
At home
Fish for all
Honouring a musician

Copyright © 2008, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu