The art form Krishnanattam (literally knwon as Dance of Krishna) was composed by King Manavedan of Kozhikode. King Manavedan wrote Krishnageethi based on the renowned poet Jayadeva's Gitagovinda. This work in Sanskrit presents the story of Lord Krishna and the art form Krishnanattam originated from this.
Krishnanattam combines artistic elements of Ashtapadiyattam, a dance form evolved in Kerala based on Jayadeva's Gitagovinda. (However, Ashtapadiyattam ceased to exist almost a century ago.)
In Krishnanaattam the story of Krishna right from his birth to his ascent to heaven is presented in eight parts. In the olden days, it was performed in eight days. There is no dialogue. The actors render in accordance with the songs from background. Chengila, maddalam and Elathalam are the accompanying musical instruments. The make up and costumes are colourful and vibrant.
Koothu is an art form in which the stories of Hindu mythology and epics are orally rendered primarily with the support of acting and hand gestures. In the olden days, it was confined to temple premises. Only the members of the Chakyar community performed this art form and hence the name Chakyar Koothu. This was performed in temple theatres called Koothambalam.
In Chakyar Koothu the entire story is presented by a single performer. The costumes are that of a court jester. Facial make-up is done with rice powder, turmeric powder and black powder. He wears an ornament in one ear and a betel leaf in the other. An accompanying artist plays the percussion instrument Mizhavu in the background.
The highlights of Chakyar Koothu, is satire, social criticism, humor and related stories or episodes presented during the performance. In the olden days of royalty, the Chakyar had the right to criticise even the King and his acts while performing. The practice was that the audience should listen to the Chakyar and accept his criticisms. Any opposition to comments made by the Chakyar while performing would have led to an end in the performance of the art form in that premises for ever.
Nangyarkoothu, a classical art form of Kerala, is a popular temple art form of Kerala. The art form was performed by Nangyars, the female members of the Nambiar community and hence this name. This art form evolved from Kutiyattam, is performed by females only and the very same facial make up and costumes of the female characters of Kutiyattam are used for this too.
Srikrishna Charitham, the story of Lord Krishna is the story often presented in Nangyarkoothu (Nangyar Koothu). It takes 12 days to present the entire story. Mizhavu, a percussion instrument is used for the background score. There is no dialogue and the story is presented via hand gestures. This too was presented only in Koothambalams or temple theaters within temple premises in the earlier days.
The ancient Sanskrit theatrical art form of the state, Kutiyattam is Kerala’s distinctive stage interpretation of the very early Sanskrit drama as dance drama. Kutiyattam (Koodiyattam), which is around 2000 years old, has been accepted as one of the 'Masterpieces of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity' by the UNESCO. It is usually performed only in temple theatres known as Koothambalam by members of the Chakyar and Nambyar castes till the first half of the 20th century. Only through rigorous training lasting many years one can aspire to master the craft of Kutiyattam.
The word Kutiyattam literally means "acting together". There are four methods or types of acting has been mentioned in Sage Bharata’s Natya Shastra – aangikam (expression using different parts of the body), vaachikam (expression through speech), sathvikam (expression of physical reactions to emotions) and aahaaryam (expression through costume, ornaments and props) are all woven into Koodiyattam performances. A typical Koodiyattam performance involves elaborate and lengthy acting sequences using hand gestures and distinctive modes of acting like Ilakiyaattom, Pakarnnaatttom and Irunnaattom.
As mentioned before, Kutiyattam performances are based on Sanskrit plays. However, only a part of the play is enacted. Thus the performance is named not after the play but usually in terms of an event that is in focus. As such, like Vichinnabhishekam, Mayaseethankom and Shoorppanakhaankom. Ankom literally means chapter.
Prathimaabhishekam written by Bhasan, Swapnavaasavadatham, Prathijnjayougandharaayanam, Oorubhangam, Madhyama Vyaayogam, Doothavakyam, Naagaanandam by Sriharshan, Aashcharya Choodamani by Shakthibhadran, Subhadra Dhananjayam by Kulasekharavarman, Thapathee Samvaranam, Kalyanasaugandhikam by Neelakantan, Mathavilasom by Mahendra Varman and Bhadavaddujakam by Bodhayanan.
Today, the presentation of a single ‘ankam’ from one of these plays takes upto eight days where as in the earlier days it took upto 41 days to complete a single chapter.
The Mizhavu is the main instrument used as accompaniment in a Kutiyattam performance. Others include Idakka, Shankhu, Kurumkuzhal and Kuzhithaalam.
The temples with koothamablams (temple theatres) for Kutiyattam performance are Thirumandhamkunnu,, Thiruvaarppu, Thiruvaalathur (Kodumba), Guruvayoor, Arppokkara, Kidangoor, Peruvanam, Thiruvegappuram, Moozhikkulam, Thirunakkara, Harippadu, Chengannur, Iringalakkuda and Vadakkumnatha, Thrissur.
Kathakali is a classical dance form of Kerala, demanding long years of training. Believed to have evolved from Ramanattam, another classical art form composed by Kottarakkara Thampuran, Kathakali incorporates the techniques of some of the major ritual art forms of Kerala.
The characters of Kathakali do not speak and the story is presented through songs from the background. This makes Kathakali music a very important component of this art form. The text of Kathakali songs is known as Attakkatha. Chenda, Maddalam, Chengila and Elaththalam are the instruments used with Kathakali music.
Like most other classical dance forms of India, Kathakali is also based on Natya Shastra, the ancient treatise on dance, written by Sage Bharata. However, Kathakali relies on Hasthalakshana Deepika, another classical text for its hand gestures.
A Kathakali performance has different components or steps. They are Keli, Arangu Keli, Thodayam, Vandana slokam, Purappadu, Melappadam, Kathabhinayam and Dhanaashi. It needs 6 to 8 hours to present the complete version of a Kathakali play.
The spectacular costumes and colourful make up are the other major features of Kathakali. It takes 3-5 hours for the facial make up of most of the characters. The make up and costume of characters are designed to highlight their characters.
To perform Kathakali, an artist needs minimum 4 to 5 years of training. Kathakali was in peril and on the verge of extinction in the beginning of 20th century. Renowned Poet Vallaththol Narayana Menon and Manakkulam Mukunda Raja took the initiative to set up Kerala Kalamandalam, a centre of excellence for classical art forms at Cheruthuruthy in Thrissur. Since then Kerala Kalamandalam works for the revival of this great art form.
Stories for Kathakali are often taken from Hindu mythology and Indian epics. Kottayaththu Thampuraan, Unnayi Warrier, Irayimman Thampi, Vayaskara Moos etc. are some of the major contributors of Attakkatha or the text for Kathakali. The main Kathakali plays include Kalyana Sougandhikam, Nala Charitham, Uththara Swayam varam, Duryodhana Vadham, Bali Vadham , Santhana Gopalam etc.
