മാൻ‌ചേൽ മിഴിയാളേ ~ Kalyana sougandhikam Kathakali

Posted by Syam on July 21, 2017 | 8 Comments

മാൻ‌ചേൽ മിഴിയാളേ നിന്നാല്‍ വാഞ്ഛിതങ്ങളായീടുന്നോ-
രഞ്ചിതസൌെഗന്ധികങ്ങള്‍ അഞ്ചാതെകൊണ്ടന്നീടാം

Bhima, the son of wind god sets out in search of Kalyanasougandhikam, a rare flower as requested by his wife Panchali.

Kalyanasougandhikam, a chapter from the epic Mahabharata, depicting the travails of Bheema who goes in search of Sougandhika flowers at the behest of his beloved wife Panchali. On the way, he meets his half-brother Hanuman and the story unfolds in the unique dramatic style of Kathakali.

Posting here few moments from Kalyanasougandhikam Kathakali performed at Vyloppilly Sanskriti Bhavan, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

Kathakali make up is an elaborate process lasting for many hours. It helps in giving a super human look to the actors. The make up of the male character is tedious and is directly applied to the face and it does not obstruct the full expression of face and eyes. All the colours used in the make-up are obtained from natural substances and herbs.

The richness of this classical dance is its magnificent mixture of colour, expression, music and drama that are unparalleled in any other art form.It is believed that Kathakali evolved from Ramanattam, a set of plays written by Kottarakkara Thampuran (erstwhile ruler of a province in Kerala) based on Ramayana.

എന്‍കണവാ കണ്ടാലും നീ…
എങ്കലൊരു കുസുമം…
നിന്‍ കരുണയുണ്ടെന്നാകില്‍ നിര്‍ണ്ണയമിനിയും മമ…
സംഗതി വരും ലഭിപ്പാന്‍ സരസ സൌഗന്ധികങ്ങള്‍…

8 Responses

  1. Peter Slaught
    July 24, 2017

    Wonderful post Syam, and photographs!

    Reply
    • Syam
      July 25, 2017

      Thank you Peter 🙂

      Reply
  2. joshi daniel
    August 2, 2017

    beautiful 🙂

    Reply
    • Syam
      August 4, 2017

      Thank you Joshi 🙂

      Reply
  3. Subhasree
    August 18, 2017

    We had been lucky enough to watch a Kathakali performance at Munnar, Kerela. The costume, the gestures, the facial expressions, eye movements, everything about Kathakali is fascinating. It is wonderful how you have captured the dance form here. Wonderful pics. 🙂

    Reply
    • Syam
      August 20, 2017

      Thank you Subhasree 🙂

      Reply
  4. Tash
    November 18, 2017

    Hello Stan, I would like to purchase a print of one of your photographs- could you please contact me? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Syam
      November 22, 2017

      Sure, please check your inbox.

      Reply

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