Omanathingal kidavo... remains one of the most popular lullabies in Malayalam. Written by Irayimman Thampi at the request of Gowri Lakshmi Bai to put her newborn son, Swathi Thirunal to bed, the verses have been adapted for many dance and music performances.
Its endearing, simple lyrics and rhythm have given it a timeless appeal, thus inspiring many artistes to interpret and portray it through music and dance. Now, Kathakali artiste Haripriya Nambudiri adapts it for the Kathakali stage. Her choreographed production will be performed on the inaugural day of a four-day Kathakali fete organised by Drisyavedi in the city. Titled, ‘Poonthenvani’ the event is part of Drisyavedi’s annual Kerala Natyotsavam festival and this edition is dedicated to Irayimman Thampi.
Select lyrical lines
“The organisers approached me with the suggestion to present the lullaby in a Kathakali format,” says Haripriya, who specialises in playing female characters. The 30-minute performance has been tuned to select lines from the poem.
“There is one character, a female, which I am essaying. Twelve lines have been taken from the whole poem. Initially, we stick to Kurinji raga, the original raga in which it was set, and, as the performance progresses, we bring in other ragas and talas. We have used only the elements of Kathakali with improvisations thrown in,” she explains.
For instance, when the character — the mother — is at a loss of words to describe her son, the poet enters the stage as an invisible presence and he sings the rest of the lines for the child.
Haripriya Nambudiri
“Poems of Edassery and Changampuzha have been adapted for Kathakali stages. But this lullaby has been not been performed in Kathakali. So that was a challenge for the small team that worked on it with me — my guru Kalamanadalam Vasu Pisharody, professor P. Venugopal and Kalamandalam Vishnu. We had to stick to the Kathakali format, but wanted to incorporate fresh aspects as well. We didn’t get much time together to brainstorm and so don’t be surprised if you find any improvisations during the performance as well!” Haripriya says. Kalamandalam Vishnu and Kalamandalam Krishnakumar are the singers. Margi Ratnakaran and Kalanilayam Krishnakumar accompany.
The performance is on November 13 at Karthika Thirunal Theatre, East Fort, at 5.30 pm
