Features: Magazine | Literary Review | Life | Metro Plus | Open Page | Education Plus | Book Review | Business | SciTech | Friday Review | Young World | Property Plus | Quest | Folio |

Mother of all roles

dramatic intensity:Kalamandalam Gopi, left, and Kottakkal Chandrasekharan in ‘Karnasapatham.’

It was an unforgettable experience for Kathakali exponent Kalamandalam Gopi and for Kathakali aficionados who thronged the venue of Payyannur Kathakali Arangu. The septuagenarian maestro whose name is synonymous with heroic characters in Kathakali in ‘pacha’ (green) make-up portrayed, for the first time, Kunthi in Mali Madhavan Nair’s ‘Karnasapatham.’

After donning the role of Lalita in Krimeeravadham “some 10 or 12 years back this was my first attempt in a female role,” said Gopi, who added that he was “not very comfortable in female roles.”

“Nevertheless, I enjoyed the performance. When people who enjoy my performances expressed their desire to see me in roles that are usually alien to me, I found it hard to turn down their request,” he added.

For the inaugural performance of ‘Karnasapatham,’ which was staged in Delhi on April 10, 1966, under the aegis of the Delhi-based International Centre for Kathakali, it was Kalamandalam Gopi, then 29, who acted as Duryodhana. Subsequently, the play was premiered in Kerala on February 10, 1968, under the initiative of the Thiruvananthapuram Kathakali Club. ‘Karnasapatham,’ hailed for the simplicity of the librettos in chaste Malayalam, is the first play in Kathakali that places Karnan as the central character. The high point of the story is his touching encounter with Kunthi on the banks of the Ganga.

Mali, using a writer’s ingenious creativity, wrote the episode in such a way that Karnan, always haunted by the riddle of his birth, dramatically learns from Kunthi herself that he is the son of the Sun god and Kunhti. The music set to rakthi ragas enhance the dramatic and emotional content of the play.

Gopi convincingly portrayed the emotionally shattered Kunthi. He stressed more on the bhava of the episode and interpreted the text with subtle mudras.

Did Kottakkal Sivaraman, the artist celebrated for the role of Kunthi, inspire him in this exposition? “Of course, to a certain extent, since plays like ‘Karnasapadam’ are not meant for the kalari and we have been performing together for over four decades,” said the maestro.

“In fact, this performance has helped me observe the characterisation of Karnan from another perspective too,” added the maestro.

Through melodious padams such as ‘Oothunnen oru sathyam…’ and ‘Unni ennude kannilunni…,’ the thespian aesthetically conveyed the agony of a broken mother.

Kottakkal Chandrasekharan as ‘Karnan’ lent excellent support to the maestro. Gopi came up with a spectacular performance that showed Kunthi narrating the circumstances under which she was forced to abandon Karnan. Chandrasekharan also depicted the conflicting emotions that plagued Karnan as he listened to Kunthi’s story. As Karnan explained the reasons for his loyalty towards the Kauravas, for a split second did the mother in Kunthi feel proud at the sincerity and candour of her son? Indeed, it was another Gopi touch to the role that plumbed the depths of his character’s thought process.

The duo portrayed the dramatic intensity and noble emotions that soothingly unveiled karuna rasa, the basic emotion on which the playwright had built the entire repertoire.

The limitations imposed by Gopi’s physical features were sidelined by his immaculate artistry and the peculiarity of the costumes that he used to play a middle- aged character like Kunthi.

The vocal support for the play, hailed for its mellifluousness, was given by Kalanilayam Unnikrishnan and Babu Namboodiri.

Kalamandalam Shanmughan’s Bhanumathi and Kalamandalam Balasubramanian’s Duryodhana were also noteworthy.

Kalamandalam Manoj acted as Dussassenan. Kalamandalam Unnikrishnanan was on the chenda and Kottakkal Ravi was on the maddalam.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail