Reviving traditional folk arts of Kerala
G.S. PAUL
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A gathering of artistes will felicitate G. Venu who turns 60 on July 25.
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DOYEN OF FOLK ARTS: G. Venu as Soorpanakha in Koodiyattom.
It will be a rare get-together of artistes of all hues - folk, classical and traditional - at Unnai Warrier Smaraka Kalanilayam, Irinjalakuda, on July 25, when they felicitate G. Venu, who turns 60 on that day. Interestingly, Natanakairali, his brainchild, completes 30 years on the same day.
Venu, who hails from Pappanamcode in Thiruvananthapuram district, had observed with great curiosity the nomadic tribes of Kakkalas and their performances. These images had made an indelible impression on him that developed into a passion to preserve the rare folk art forms that were becoming extinct.
Theatrical exploration
Venu's theatrical exploration over the last 50 years have been aimed at preserving these art forms, including Koodiyattom. Natanakairali is a manifestation of his zeal to enlarge the stage for the indigenous art forms.
The organisation is now a home away from home for performers, scholars and researchers. Venu's strong foundation in Kathakali might have sensitised him to the nuances of folk and traditional arts of Kerala. His innate talent was honed by doyens like Guru Gopinath and Chengannur Raman Pillai and he became an accomplished Kathakali artiste.
However, Venu's creative genius was on the look out for something new. Finally, when `Alphabet of Gestures in Kathakali' was published in 1968, it was hailed as a path-breaking documentation.
It won him the Kerala Sahithya Akademi award. Perhaps, what catapulted him to fame was the exhibition `Four Hundred years of Dance Notation,' held in New York and Harvard University, in which his work was also displayed along with those of 55 notators around the world.
Venu believes that the six years he had spent as an itinerant researcher across India was the most rewarding phase of his life. Even as he worked as a Kathakali artiste in Madhya Pradesh Kala Parishad, he got the rare opportunity to travel with Sheik Gulab's tribal dance troupe. The interactions and discussions he had with stalwarts like Devilal Samar (puppetry), B.V. Karanth (theatre), Ustad Allauddin Khan (Hindustani music), K.T. Desamukh (theatre), and Kumar Gandharv (Hindustani music) inspired him to embark on a survey and study of all art forms of Kerala other than Kathakali. Rejuvenation of the puppet theatre in Kerala was a sequel to this decision. Both shadow puppet theatre (Tholpavakoothu) and glove puppetry (Pava kathakali) owe their revival to Natanakairali.
Tryst with Koodiyattom
It was during his stint as a teacher at School of Drama, Calicut University, that Venu happened to see a performance by Guru Ammannur Madhava Chakyar at the koothambalam of Sree Vadakkunnathan Temple in Thrissur. The theatrical potential of the centuries-old Sanskrit drama and its scope of abhinaya made a profound influence on him. So much so, he resigned his job and shifted his residence to Irinjalakuda.
At the age of 37, when Venu was admitted to the Ammannur Kalari, he made history by becoming the first non-Chakiyar student to learn Koodiyattom. Ever since his initiation, Venu has been following the acharya like his shadow, taking care of his needs in the capacity of a disciple and impresario.
In turn, Madhava Chakyar groomed him as his protégé. The long association transformed Venu into a consummate performer and authority on Koodiyattom. `The Dakshina Chitra Virudhu' was conferred jointly on the guru and shishya for lifetime achievement by Padma Subramaniam in Chennai in January 2005.
The books on Mohiniyattom and Nangiarkooth that Venu has co-authored with his wife, Nirmala Panicker, are proof of his interest and in-depth knowledge on these lasya dance forms of Kerala origin. A few books on Koodiyattom apart, Venu's recent works, `Into The World of Koodiyattom With Legendary Ammannur Madhava Chakyar' and `Kathakali, Koodiyattom and Other Performing Arts' are unparalleled in respect of their content and presentation.
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