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It is said that the katha -story -is only a part of the Kathakali experience. The powerful drums, the elabo rate make-up of the actors and their grand gestures and eye movements can be enthralling in and of themselves. But the sixth edition of Kathakali festival at Kalakshetra, March 7-10, sought to educate the Chennai audience. A powerpoint presentation accompanied the performances to explain the nuances.
On March 7, the story of the performance was from the Mahabharata in which Bheema sets out in search of Kalyanasougandhikam -a flower and the name of the play -whose fragrance enthralled Panchali. Bheema, played by Sadanam Manikandan, goes to the forest to bring the flower to Draupadi, played by Kalamandalam Suchindran ­ in Kathakali, dalam Suchindran ­ in Kathak actors are all males. With a mixture of concern and teasing, Draupadi asks Bheema if he wasn't afraid of the forest.Bheema says he is brave and has the mace to defend himself.
Kalyanasougandhikam is one of the most popular Kathakali plays but also among the tough ones to perform, says Haripadman, a lecturer at Kalakshetra. “It is an old play and very well defined. The mudras are elaborate and the actor has to adhere closely to the tradition,“ he adds.
The theme of this year's Kathakali festival was “Saketa Bhadram“, which refers to something that is well settled and safely ensconced. The plays performed over the four days at the festival were well defined ones, allowing little room for improvisation. More than 60 performers had come from all over Kerala. Kalyanasoug andhikam couldn't be completed at Kalakshetra though. Naripatta Narayanan Namboodiri, who was to play Hanuman, fell sick just before he was to make his entry on stage. “We had to stop the play stage. “We had to stop the play since we can't just get any other performer to jump in. Make-up starts six hours before the perform ance,“ says Haripad man. So Bheema's ego wasn't crushed after all. Hanuman couldn't come on stage to hum ble him and show that they were brothers.