THRISSUR: For the first time in its 90-year history, Kerala Kalamandalam has started admitting girl students for the Kathakali course. Kalamandalam sources said that out of the 10 students who have been admitted for Kathakali in Class VII this year nine are girls. Kalamandalam vice-chancellor T K Narayanan said “this year we decided to fulfil the long-pending demand of giving admission to girls for Kathakali.”
Art critic K K Gopalakrishnan said even though Kathakali is perceived as a highly masculine art form and female roles are traditionally handled by men, there have been attempts by women to take up this art right from the 18th century. Gopalakrishnan, who has devoted one chapter on ‘women in Kathakali’ in his research book ‘Kathakali Dance-Theatre’, said more women had started practising this art between 1970 and 1990. Some women from abroad had also undergone short-term courses in Kathakali at Kalamandalam earlier, he said.
Even though there are some women Kathakali artists, most of them have been trained under individual masters or by private institutes. “It is a really remarkable development that girls are now getting an opportunity to undergo institutional training in Kathakali. At Kalamandalam the students will get exposed to systematic training from a diverse spectrum of teachers,” said Ranjini Suresh, a Kathakali exponent from Tripunithura.
Requirement of harsh physical training, including ‘chavuttiyuzhichil’ (massage by feet) is often cited as a constraint for initiating girls into this field. “We will evolve appropriate training modules for girls,” said Thulasi Kalamandalam, the faculty member who heads the Kathakali Thekkan Style. Artists and teachers point out that girls may not require rigorous physical training considering their natural body flexibility.
The students who have got admission are also thrilled. “I’m excited as I could get admission in the first batch of girls for Kathakali at Kalamandalam,” said Devananda S R, from Muthuvilakkade, near Sasthamkotta in Kollam.
“I was keen to study Kathakali, especially at Kalamandalam. My aunt had studied dance there. I’m sure that girls will also be able to perform well just like boys in Kathakali,” said A Krishnapriya from Alappuzha.
