INTRODUCTION
Kathakali-the complete theatre is a perfect fusion of the
arts of literature,music,acting, painting and sculpture.The origin of kathakali
is steeped in myths and legends.The art of kathakali is older than its
literature which is about four centuries old.In the field of abhinaya,hand
gestures,make-up and dresss kootiattam can be called as the true forbearer of
kathakali.In 1653 AD the Raja of
Calicut,Manaveda Samootiri ,set the Sanskrit script of ‘Krishnageeti’[an epic poem of Krishna] to
dance and thus in creating ‘Krishnanattam’ moved one step forward in the
evolution of the dance-drama form in kerala.This form began using a variety of
characters as well as drawing upon Kerala’s martial arts tradition of
Kalarippayattu[as per the Natyasastra chapters on ‘Chari Vidhanam’ and ‘Mandala
Vikalpanam’] for movements basic steps.The story line consisting of Lord
Krishna’s life from birth till ascension to heaven was delineated in eight
parts and enacted through eiht successive nights.the stories were Avataram,Kaliya
Mardanam,Rasakreeda,Kamsavadham,Swayamvaram,Bana Yudham,Vividavadham and
Swargarohanam.The dress was more sophisticated than Kootiattam and
differentiated in character types.Masks were also used in plenty.The Chengila
and the Illattalam were played by two singers and the Idakka, and two maddolams
were used as percussion instruments.Krishnageeti was sung in Sanskrit and
performances were given within the temple courtyard. . Once Kottarakkara Thampuran, the Raja of
Kottarakkara who was attracted by Krishnanaattam requested the Zamorin for the
loan of a troupe of performers. Due to the political rivalry between the two,
Zamorin did not allow this. So Kottarakkara Thampuran created another art form
called Ramanattam which was later transformed into Aattakatha. Krishnanaattam
was written in Sanskrit, and Raamanaattam was in Malayalam. By the end of 17th
century, Attakatha was presented to the world with the title 'Kathakali'. Ramanattam was first performed in front of the deity at
the Ganapathi temple of Kottarakkara.It
showed Rama’s life from birth to coronation in eight parts.The stories
were –Putra Kameshti,Seeta Swayamvaram,Vichhinnabhishekham,Kharavadham,Bali Vadham
and yuddham.The songs were sung in Malayalam and performances were given
outside temple courtyards Thus it achieved tremendous popularity.The character
artist in Ramanattam accompanied his gestures with songs sung by himself though
an accompanying vocalist also be present.The costume was similar to
Krishnanattam,butb not equally grand.Instead of occasionally using masks as in
Krishnanattam,make-up was applied and simple head-gear was worn.From this time
dance-drama in Kerala became a torch-bearer for the masses. At the end of the
seventeenth century,the Raja of Kottayam drew inspiration from the Mahabharata
and wrote Bakavadham, Kalyana
Saugandhikam,Kirmeera Vadham and Kalakeya Vadham of great literary value and
set them to the Ramanattam dance form.The author of four kathakali plays, he
set th standard for the subsequent writers.These plays achieved more
sophistication than the original Ramanattam style and were widely popular.
