The 34th Natya Kala Conference at Sri Krishna Gana Sabha ended by striking the right note with showstopper Margi Madhu Chakyar, ace performer of Koodiyattam – an art form recognised by UNESCO as the ‘masterpiece of the oral and intangible heritage of humanity.’ Margi Madhu presented a piece named ‘Dhruva’ in the Conference titled ‘Knowing Again,’ which delved into the artistic explorations of less visited characters from Hindu mythology.
“It was a challenge to choreograph the piece,” says Madhu, as Koodiyattam has not yet dealt with the character. Being an essential part of the Sanskrit theatre tradition, it is necessary for a character to be present in any of the existing plays/ ‘natakam’ in order to be enacted as Koodiyattam. The absence of reference in a Sanskrit play led to further perquisition and the slokas from Vedavyasa’s ‘Bhagavatam’ and Melpathoor’s ‘Narayaneeyam’ were adopted for crafting the repertoire.
“Usually it will take hours to enact a small portion of a segment,” points out Madhu. “Within the given time frame of a conference, it is possible to portray only glimpses of events in the narrative.”
Margi Madhu, a protégé of his father Guru Moozhikkulam Kochukuttan Chakyar, and groomed under the meticulous care of legendary Ammannoor Madhava Chakyar, set in concrete his repute as a top notch Koodiyattam artist with his bewitching performance.
The technique of storytelling through a narrator was endorsed in his choreography. The repertoire dawned with the narrator pointing out to the Pole Star, taking the viewers down the lane of mythology. With the technique of ‘pakarnaattam’, where the narrator glided from one role to the other unfurling the different facets of melancholy, he transformed ripples of his abhinaya into waves of mesmerisation in the audience. Madhu is equally involved in cross cultural collaborations and contemporary theatre, but when it comes to Koodiyattam, he gives immense care in preserving the tradition and sanctity of the art. For lecture demonstrations and experimental projects, he opts to perform without the ‘aaharyam’ (costume) and the ‘nilavilakku’ (bell metal oil lamp), a conspicuous aspect in his ‘Dhruva’ presentation.
Madhu was well supported by the percussionists on mizhavu - the iconic copper drum which is the quintessential part of Koodiyattam – which was handled elegantly by Kalamandalam Manikandan and Nepathya Jinesh Chakyar, along with a graceful rendition of edakka by Kalanilayam Rajan and thalam by Dr. Indu G.
Until a few decades ago, this incredible two-millennia-old art form was confined to the four walls of the temple-theatre complex and performed only by the Chakyar clan. Today, unlike those days, art connoisseurs get the fortuity to witness this ancient marvel out in the public.
“It’s immensely satisfying to interact and perform in front of legendary dancers like Yamini Krishnamoorthy, Prof. C.V Chandrasekhar and a whole galaxy of art critics,” says Madhu, before packing up to catch his train back to Kerala, where he serves as the Assistant Professor in the Department of Theatre at the Sree Sankara University of Sanskrit along with teaching at Nepathya, his institute for Koodiyattam.“Conferences like these help a lot for the augmentation of the art and the artist,” he concludes.
