Most tourists who visit Kerala go to see a Kathakali show. Characterized by bright makeup and masks this uniquely Keralite performance acts out Indian epics using only mime. For many travellers here Kathakali is the state’s major art-form but beyond this there are numerous traditions that have been slowly dying out. On the outskirts of Cheruthuruthy a unique school is focused on turning that tide around and reviving these generation-old art-forms.
By the time I arrive at Kerala Kalamandalam University classes are already in full swing. Established in 1930 by the poet Vallathol, this school is not only a training ground for young artists but also devoted to promoting and preserving Kerala’s indigenous forms of theatre. There’s an aura of dedicated concentration over the leafy campus very unlike the aura of any school I remember, and its students have been hard at work since 5am this morning.
Six delicate girls in the open-air class in front of me are practising a dance known as mohiniattom: a kind of female-only ballet. At the beginning of the 20th century this dance was fast becoming a declining art. Its historic association with temple davadasis (girls that served inside the temples and performed a similar role in Indian culture as the geishas of Japan) meant that many people had become embarrassed by the dance itself and it looked like mohiniattom would fade away, like the davadasis before it, into history. The university has managed to restore Mohiniattom to its rightful place as a respectable art-form in Kerala and is one of the school’s many success stories.
But it’s not just about one dance. The staccato beat of a dozen drums beats out from one class where a group of young boys practise. In another class neat lines of children learn the intricate hand gestures and facial expressions of Kathakali. The whole campus is alive with rhythm. It’s a wonderful experiment in preserving art that is successfully nurturing young performers and is assuring the future of theatre in Kerala.
