Tirelessly pursuing an artistic mission
K.K. GOPALAKRISHNAN
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Kalamandalam Govindankutty and his wife, Kalamandalam Thankamanikutty, have been teaching Kathakali and Bharatanatyam in West Bengal for more than 50 years.
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DANCERS WITH A MISSION: Kalamandalam Govindankutty and Kalamandalam Thankamanikutty.
Guru Kalamandalam Govindankutty and Guru Kalamandalam Thankamanikutty, popularly known as `The Kutties,' are synonymous with Kathakali and dance in West Bengal. Last year, Govindankutty completed the 50th anniversary of his stint in Kolkata. Govindankutty joined Kerala Kalamandalam in 1940 and passed out with distinction in 1949.
"Soon Vallathol deputed me to the erstwhile Madras to work with dancer Thara Choudhury because I was able to communicate well in English and Hindi too," he recalls.
However, after a couple of months, he left the troupe and joined Mrinalini Sarabhai's troupe in Ahmedabad, until he returned to Kerala in 1955.
"In the same year, I came to Kolkata as a Kathakali instructor on an invitation from Malayalee Samajam."
Although, Kathakali was then taught at Santiniketan, it was not so popular in Kolkata and the north-east. In fact, it was Govindankutty who introduced and popularised the technically rich northern style of Kathakali in Kolkata. His choreographies in Kathakali style for compositions of Tagore was a new experience for Bengalis.
In 1958, he married to Kalamandalam Thankamanikutty, who had completed the Kalamandalam course in dance. Thankamanikutty began teaching Bharatanatyam in Kolkata.
"I continued with the Malayalee Samajam until 1962 when I joined West Bengal's Academy of Dance, Drama and Music, which later became the Rabindra Bharati University, as lecturer in Kathakali," reminisces Govindankutty who retired from the Rabindra Bharati in 1992.
Thankamanikutty's institution has six branches in Kolkata and 1,500-plus students are trained in Bharatanatyam under a six-year course. Mohiniyattam is also taught at her institution.
Kalamandalam Calcutta
In the early sixties, they were known as the Kalamandalam couple and gradually their institution came to be known as Kalamandalam Calcutta. In 1968, the couple got it officially registered as Kalamandalam Calcutta with Govindankutty as founder-principal.
Do they miss Kerala in their artistic life or have any regrets in leaving Kerala?
"No, I don't," comes the answer from the master. "If I had been confined to Kerala, I might have been able to do more performances in Kerala, but I don't that that is important. Because of my shift to this city I was able to achieve what I always wanted to. I was able to train a number of students who popularised Kathakali in India and abroad," he adds.
However, Thankamanikutty believes that artistically she "always missed something by moving out of Kerala."
"In Kerala, I am usually treated as an artiste living afar and not in the local mainstream, especially when it comes to invitations to perform in Kerala. However, we have been honoured by several institutions in Kerala, including the Kerala Kalamandalam," she adds. Disciples, fans and well-wishers have decided to celebrate this couple's Golden Jubilee as teachers with art festivals and felicitations.
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