“Art helps us see connections & brings a more coherent meaning to our world.”
Kerala Kalamandalam at Cheruthuruthy, close to River Bharathapuzha in Thrissur district is the testimony to the rich thriving art scene and major part of the cultural renaissance movement in Kerala. A walkthrough the premier institute of arts takes you deep in the idea founded by famous Malayalam novelist Padmabhooshan Vallathol Narayana Menon in 1930.
If you are remotely interested in arts & culture, then there is no other place in Kerala that could provide you a deep exploratory & engaging experience of Kerala culture amidst the powerful sights & sounds of students being traditionally trained in performing art disciplines like Kathakali, Koodiyattam, Mohiniyattam, Thullal and Panchavaadyam. The foundations were laid out under the principles of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore in Shantiniketan.
Following the Gurukul learning philosophy, the institute is a living example of traditional style of education that is motivated to invoke deep bonds between the teacher and the student.
Life at Kerala Kalamandalam starts early in the morning at 4.30 and continue till late evening that focuses on physical exercise, body massage, recapitulation and repetition of lessons learned. You can see and interact with students as young as the age of 13, both local and international students (from parts of Europe) being trained in different courses like Kathakali acting, drumming, make-up and Indian dancing, being taught in mainly two languages, Malayalam and Sanskrit.
One of the major attractions here as a visitor is Koothambalam or the traditional dance theatre. The theatre was built in traditional architectural elegance, the pillars of the natyagruha are made of granite; while the roof-structure, the stage-floor and its pillars are made of teak-wood and rose-wood. You will see that on the granite pillars, are inscribed one hundred and eight karanas (dance postures) dealt within the Natyasastra.
Explore, Observe and Engage at the Koothambalam’s three main rooms: the aniyara (green room), the rangam (stage) and the mridanga-patha (where the drum is kept). The constant conundrum of artistic sights and sounds fill the air with artistic impressions.
Also, if you are here one cannot miss the art gallery at Kalamandalam that hosts statues of different Kathakali characters and other performing arts. You step into the gallery adorning the outer walls that are beautifully inscribed with mural paintings. Then you step into the costume room where you will be awe-struck to witness the wide variety of costumes, head-gears, wooden masks and wooden weapons used by the Kathakali and Koodiyattam characters.
There is also Vallathol Museum – the final resting place, which is very close to the campus if you wish to dive into the life of poet and scholar Vallathol preserved in visuals and words.
Spend a day with the masters around the simple, pure and ethnic atmosphere, which is proven to have calming effects on your body, mind and soul.
The interaction with Nature is the founding discourse of any traveller. Recently moving to the mountain village brought me nearer to ground, a look closer at the dance of eternity. I realised there are varied worlds steeped in beauty, innocence and imagination, not bound by false arcades of norms and pretence. Travel stories fascinate me. For me, it’s been about renegotiating newer territories; forever relocating; listening & writing stories.
