In the latter half of the last century, the aesthetics of Kathakali went through subtle yet signal transitions thanks to the stylistic magnitude and imaginative acumen of a select group of artistes. A few among them were overwhelmingly drawn towards the exactitude of their immediate predecessors so that they became the true inheritors of a glorious legacy. Kottakkal Nandakumaran Nair is one of those talented artists who could infuse fresh vigour to some of the key characters in Kathakali even as he steadfastly stood by the chiselled vocabulary of the art form.
Nandakumar hails from the Desamangalam village of Palakkad district. In his childhood days, the illustrious Desamangalam Mana was the venue of Kathakali recitals by top-ranking artistes. Thus the cultural climate formed an ideal backdrop for an aspirant like Nandakumar to fall in love with the traditional temple arts. In his boyhood days, he had evinced a fervent interest in dance prompting him to join Kerala Kalamandalam in the early 1960s for learning Thullal under the maestro, Kalamandalam Divakaran Nair. Along with Thullal, Kathakali too drew his attention and he fondly watched the classes of the legendary teachers, Kalamandalam Ramankutty Nair and Padmanabhan Nair.
Kottakkal Nandakumaran Nair
On completing his training in Thullal, Nandakumar looked forward to practise Kathakali at Kalamandalam itself. But the authorities concerned cited technical objections to his re-admission. Reading his disillusionment, Vasu Pisharody, then a senior student of Kathakali at Kalamandalam, advised him to go to P.S.V. Natyasanghom, Kottakkal, and meet Guru Kottakkal Krishnankutty Nair. Carrying a letter from Vazhenkada Kunju Nair, the then Principal of Kalamandalam, Nandakumar left for Kottakkal and within no time came under the tutelage of Krishnankutty Nair. The inexorable training lasted for sixteen years.
Training ground
Under Krishnankutty Nair, Nandakumar mastered the techniques of Kathakali comprehensively, grasped the nuances of characterisation and energy utilisation. Nandakumar soon realised that his physique and mental makeup are more suited to play villainous characters such as Ravana, Narakasura, Duryodhana and Keechaka. “However for the programmes of Natyasanghom, I was invariably assigned the role of Krishna. There was no way I could come on stage in lead roles. Nonetheless for the overnight performances of The Ramayana, I got chances to present Ravana and Hanuman besides therole of Srirama,” recollects Nandakumar who reluctantly gave up his tenure as teacher at his alma mater decades back as he could no longer afford the inflexibility of the hierarchy.
Kottakkal Nandakumaran Nair as Hanuman
The discerning audience all over Kerala and outside began to appreciate and hold in high esteem Nandakumar in the anti-hero roles and that of Hanuman and the aboriginal hunter. His rasabhinaya has almost always been in sync with angikabhinaya , the determining component of the characterisation of Prathinayakas in the Kalluvazhi school of Kathakali. Nandakumar has never been fond of individual improvisations and his discourses in Kathakali seldom go beyond the structured manodharma .
“All these years I’ve been striving with limited success to equate my performance in form and content with those of the titans in the field. Nothing more do I aspire in my life as a Kathakali artiste,” says Nandakumar. His portrayal of Hanuman in various plays, as the hunter in Nalacharitham Day II and as Parasurama have won the hearts of the rasikas far and wide.
A few discerning rasikas are of the opinion that his obsession with the organic framework of Kathakali interferes, at times, with the spontaneity of characterisation. As one who has been destined to be part of the aesthetic lineage of Vazhenkada Kunju Nair, Nandakumar’s performances are perpetually associated with the received texts and the contexts of each play. He is therefore not so comfortable with the slots offering space for free style acting in Kathakali.
As a teacher
Nandakumar has done Kathakali workshops for students of theatre and dance in several European countries. At the University of Warsaw, he trained advanced students of theatre for three months way back in the 1990s. Prof. Maria Christopher Brisky, then head of the Faculty of Oriental Studies at the University and former Polish Ambassador to India, asked Nandakumar about his caste. Brisky told him one need not feel ashamed of one’s tradition to become politically correct. He suggested the actor to suffix ‘Nair’ to his formal name,which is an identity linked to a community that thrived in traditional martial arts and Kathakali simultaneously. Nandakumar was amused by Brisky’s elucidation and rechristened himself as Nandakumaran Nair.
Being mercilessly self-critical, Nandakumar is disinclined to don the roles of Nala, Bahuka, Karna and the like. He believes that the complex mindscape of such roles is beyond his capacity. Nowadays he is apprehensive of presenting even Dharmaputra in Kirmeeravadham, which he used to do a lot in the past. “The character is quite demanding and I feel I cannot any longer sustain the rigour it calls for.” Nandakumar is a perfectionist and hence his anxiety is backed by sound reasoning.
Winner of numerous awards and honours including that of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi and Kerala Kalamandalam, Nandakumar has been a freelance artiste ever since he left P.S.V.Natyasanghom. In his commitment to the visual dynamics of Kathakali and quest for knowledge related to its opulent literature, Nandakumar is a cut above the rest. Unarguably he is a consummate artiste whom the youngsters in the field can emulate lest they fall prey to exhibitionism and to unethical practices on stage.
