The pangs of love
B. HARIHARAN
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Kathakali Artistes from Sandarsan Kathakali Vidyalaya brought alive the lovelorn Nala of ‘Nalacharitam Onnaam Divasam.’
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Visual treat: A scene from ‘Nalacharitam Onnaam Divasam.’
Nalacharitam Onnaam Divasam,’ which was performed at the Natakasala of the Sreekrishnaswamy Temple, Ambalapuzha, was a visual treat. Kalamandalam Mukundan’s portrayal of a lovelorn King Nala who is pining for Damayanti after he hears about her was an essay in manodharma. Nala’s elaborate aattam with Narada was followed by a detailed abhinaya of the pangs of love that torment him.
The way Nala chides the moon, the clouds and even the wind for their seeming indifference to his plight and their refusal to convey his message of love to his beloved reminded the audience of the ‘meghasandesam.’ Although such aattams are not there in the Nalacharitam aattaprakaram, these unconventional ones did bring out Mukundan’s range of talent. The success of this sequence lay in the way it prepared the audience for the entry of the messenger – Hamsam – in all its grace.
Kalanilayam Vinod’s Hamsam set a brisk pace for the entire performance. Vinod’s gait and his movements brought Hamsam to life. Nala’s pangs of love transcend into tenderness for the bird. This metonymic shift of all of Nala’s feelings to the bird was one of the highlights of the play.
Nuances of sringara
Kalamandalam Vijayan as Damayanti nimbly performed the ‘saree’ dance, evoking different nuances of sringara. The sequence with Damayanti and Hamsam, however, fell short for not providing a balance to the earlier sequence of Hamsam with Nala. Kalamandalam Sajeev’s rendering of the song was stirring as it contributed to the emotional complexity of the performance. Overall, the performance reflected the commitment of a young group of artistes from Sandarsan Kathakali Vidyalaya, Ambalapuzha. While Kalamandalam Vijayan, Kalamandalam Mukundan, Kalanilayam Vinod, Kalamandalam Arun and Kalamandalam Jishnu performed on stage; Kalamandalam Sajeev and Kalamandalam Jayaprakash rendered the song to the accompaniment of Kalanilayam Manoj’s maddalam, Kalamandalam Srikanth’s chenda and Kalanilayam Ratheesh’s edakka.
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