The ‘Nalacharitam first day’ Kathakali presentation by Wayanad District Collector A. Geetha along with her friends at the Melekkavu auditorium of the Sree Bhagavathi temple at Vaaliyoorkavu, near Mananthavady, on Saturday, was a rewarding experience for the audience.
An episode from the ‘Nalacharitam’, composed by Unnayi Warrier, was performed by Ms. Geetha along with Subhadra Nair, former deputy planning officer, Wayanad; and Rathi Sudheer, surveyor, Soil Conservation department.
“With their performance, the artists have proved that they are capable of preserving the traditional nuances of Kathakali as well as of improvisation,” K. Prabhakaran Nair, a Kathakali expert, said.
A 30-minute scene depicts the deep love of Damayanti, the daughter of the king of Vidarbha, to Nala. Damayanti loses interest in playing with her friends Kala and Kamala in the garden after she falls in love with Nala. Though Kala and Kamala try to persuade her to play with them, Damayanti tells them that she wants to return to her palace as she cannot enjoy the humming of beetle, the melody of koel bird, and the sweet smell of flowers in the garden since they make her sad. As they try to return from the garden, they see a halo in the sky. Kamala says it is lightning and Kala thinks it is the descent of a full moon to earth. Damayanti is sure that it is a golden swan. The trio then leaves the garden to receive the swan.
Ms. Geetha as Damayanti, Ms. Subhadra Nair as Kala, and Ms. Rathi Sudheer as Kamala gave mature and spirited performances, winning ovation from the audience, Mr. Nair said.
Trained in Bharatanatyam
“I was trained in Bharatanatyam from my childhood and had performed in various stages during my school and college days. But this is my first experience in Kathakali,” Ms. Geetha told The Hindu after the performance.
“I had spent nearly one month, after my office hours, to learn the steps and mudras of Kathakali from Kottakkal Unnikrishnan. My long experience in Bharatanatyam also helped me perform well,” she added.
Kottakkal Santhosh and A. Vineesh rendered the songs . Manish Ramanathan on the Chenda and Kottakkal Sabarish on the Maddalam gave percussion support. K. Padmanabhan, P. Rajeev and V. Ravi did the make-up and Rangasree Njalamkurussi provided the costumes.
